Victoria Cole graduates in May 2024 from Siena College where she will receive her B.A. in American Studies with a certificate in Public History. During her time at Siena, she assisted with some collection work at Brookside Museum in Ballston Spa as well as the Schenectady County Historical Society as part of class projects. Victoria has worked many summer and winter events in the Public History department at Fort Ticonderoga from 2017 through 2024. During her time at Fort Ticonderoga, she has worked in Fife & Drum and various trades. She did an internship with Fort Ticonderoga as well researching women’s roles during the American Revolution and interpreting what she learned. Victoria was active on Siena’s campus where she worked as an Ambassador tour guide for Admissions, played flute in the Pep Band at the college’s basketball games and other events, and was also a member of the Siena Irish Dance Team.
Kaitlyn Grundy is a graduate student at the University of the Arts pursuing her M.A. in Museum Studies. She previously spent several years as a middle school Social Studies teacher teaching U.S. History. During that time, she worked on implementing Project-Based, Game-Based, and Inquiry-Based Learning within the classroom. Her current focus is on including Inquiry-Based Learning in the museum space. She earned her B.A. in History from Randolph-Macon College.
Ekin Berk Polat is currently a second-year M.A. student in Interdisciplinary Studies at New York University, where he crafts his own major by integrating museum studies, art education, and studio art departments. Born and raised in Turkey, He holds dual degrees in History, Archaeology, and History of Art from Koc University. He is a 2022 European Heritage Youth Ambassador, a Lifelong Dalai Lama Fellow, and a Fulbright master’s scholar. He interned at the Art Institute of Chicago and the Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Art. Ekin also worked as an undergraduate research assistant on several projects, including Urban Occupations OETR, the Sagalassos Archaeological Research Project, and the Banuu Project in Iraq. His academic focus lies in exploring the transformative power of art and cultural heritage in fostering positive community change and addressing social justice issues within museums and historic sites.
Hayden Slentz-Kesler received his B.A. in History from Appalachian State University in 2022 and will be starting a master’s program at the University of East Anglia in the fall. He previously worked as a History Interpreter at George Washington’s Mount Vernon, giving tours and engaging the public about the Washingtons, slavery, and the early United States. He has also worked at the Molly Brown House Museum in Denver, Colorado, and the North Carolina Museum of Art in Raleigh, North Carolina, where he gained experience helping with the planning and installation of a gallery. At Fort Ticonderoga, Hayden will be helping to design and create tactile and digital gallery elements for an upcoming exhibition, part of the Revolutionary Anthology, and he is excited to dive into this curatorial project.