MUSEUM
LEADERSHIP

Dianne Firment proudly serves as the International African American Museum’s Finance Director. Her experience and attention to detail help to propel the financial growth and success of the museum’s operations.

Dianne’s professional history includes more than twenty-five years of progressive experience in the fields of finance, human resource management, and leadership. Prior to joining the IAAM staff, she served as the Director of Finance at the Abby Kelley Foster Charter Public School in Worcester, MA. There, she directed all accounting and human resource functions of the school with over $20 Million in revenues, over 200 staff, and 1,426 students. She received her B.S. in Business Administration with a focus in Accounting and completed certificate coursework in Human Resource Management at Assumption College.

Malika N. Pryor, chief learning and engagement officer for the International African American Museum, provides strategic direction for creating and enhancing dynamic programs that explore the Middle Passage, the African diaspora, and the crucial contributions that African Americans have made to our history and to our modern world. As a member of the senior executive team, Pryor works closely with the CEO to establish partnerships and programs that help support and sustain the museum’s mission, including school programs, faith-based initiatives and programs, local and national public programs, and programs at the Center for Family History, a one-of-a-kind research center that focuses on African American genealogy.

A native of Detroit, Michigan, she was shaped by many of the city’s community and cultural arts institutions, and her education and work experience reflect this.

Pryor received her Bachelor of Arts in Organizational Studies and Afro-American & African Studies from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor before going on to earn her Juris Doctor degree from Wayne State University Law School in Detroit.

After practicing law in Atlanta for several years, Pryor returned to her hometown of Detroit in 2010, where she served as director of education and programs at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History. From there, she started a boutique non-profit consulting firm providing services to emerging community-based initiatives with a special emphasis on BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) founders. She then joined the National Art Gallery of the Bahamas where she established the communications and education department. While living abroad, she founded the Curlyfest Bahamas Festival before once again returning to Detroit, where she most recently served as senior director of educations and programs for the Detroit Historical Society. There, she formed a cohesive department serving 25,000 students with 220 public programs.