Skip to main content

Subscribe to Smithsonian magazine and get a FREE tote.

Andrea Kim Neighbors

Andrea Kim Neighbors (she/her/hers) serves as the Head of Education for the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center (APAC). She collaborates with educators and Asian American and Pacific Islander community members and content specialists on the development of APAC’s National Education Program. Before joining APAC, Andrea was Manager of Community Partnerships at The Phillips Collection in Washington, DC, and Tour Manager at the Wing Luke Museum of the Asian Pacific American Experience in Seattle, WA, designing customized museum experiences to best fit the needs of local educators. Andrea is a Professorial Lecturer in the Museum Studies department at George Washington University and serves as a board member of the Museum Education Roundtable. She was a Getty Leadership NextGen 2019 Fellow and a Board Officer for the American Alliance of Museum’s Diversity Professional Network. She holds a BA and MA in Cultural Anthropology and has conducted fieldwork in Russian Far East, studying the politicization of childhood.  

Stories from this author

We-Are-Here-Banner-2048x971.jpg

'We Are Here' Introduces Readers to 30 Inspiring Profiles

The Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center’s new middle-grade anthology dives into stories of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders who shaped the United States

Through co-creation efforts with K-12 educators and Asian American community partners, the National Veterans Network, elementary and middle school educators, Asian Pacific American Center interns and National Museum of American History staff, learn more about the stories behind objects. (Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center)

What's Missing from Classrooms When Asian American and Pacific Islander Voices Aren't Included?

Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs) have been present throughout America’s past through migration, labor, activism, science innovation, art, literature, community organizing, and so much more. When AAPI stories and voices are missing from what students learn, grappling with our current moment of increased hate and violence, and thoughtfully discussing this with students runs the risk of becoming even more difficult without support and resources to contextualize what we are witnessing today.

Museum educator Christopher Williams engages with student visitors during a Community Day in 2018. (Leah Jones, National Museum of African American History and Culture)

Cause and Effect: Stories of Inspiration and Representation in Education

Three Smithsonian educators pinpoint their motivations for careers in museums.