Newfields President and CEO resigns

Indianapolis, Indiana – Colette Pierce Burnette, the president and CEO of the Newfields Art and Nature Museum, announced her resignation on Friday night, after holding the position for the previous fifteen months.

There was no explanation given in the press statement for Burnette’s leaving. The Board of Trustees of the art museum declared that Michael Kubacki will temporarily take up the positions of CEO and President.

“We thank Dr. Burnette for her service to Newfields,” said Darrianne Christian, the Newfields Board of Trustees chair. “She helped deepen our relationships with the community and championed the transformative powers of art and nature. We are grateful for her work on behalf of Newfields and wish her well in her future endeavors.”

Kubacki previously spent nine years, from 2014 to this year, as a member of the Newfields Board of Trustees. In addition, he was the board’s vice chair from May 2021 until May 2023.

“Mike has a track record as a successful leader and manager in both the public and private sectors, deep knowledge of Newfields, and a passion for our mission,” said Christian. “We have every confidence in him, and he is fully supported by the Board of Trustees and Newfields’ senior leadership. We are moving ahead and looking forward to the future.”

On August 1, 2022, Burnette was hired after former President Charles Venable resigned due to a contentious job ad that put Venable and the museum in hot water.

Following criticism for its controversial language in a job advertising for the director of the Indianapolis Museum of Art, which included a passage about “maintaining the Museum’s traditional, core, white art audience,” Venable resigned in February 2021.

Regarding the board’s schedule for choosing the next CEO and president, the art museum provided no details in its press release.