Deborah L. Hughes, President & CEO of the National Susan B. Anthony Museum & House, has announced that she will retire at the end of 2025, having served in the position since 2007. The organization’s Board of Trustees is leading the transition and succession plan, with facilitation by Aria Strategies, LLC.
Hughes remarked, “The organization has a strong and energized Board of Trustees, a balanced operating budget, a growing endowment, and a talented and dedicated staff. Now is the right time to pass the reins.”
Hughes has led the fundraising and planning efforts for a campus expansion that includes a new building designed to expand the Anthony Museum’s reach and impact. The new building will house the Museum’s permanent collection, offer engaging interpretive exhibits, and exponentially increase the Museum’s capacity for visitors. There will be expanded off-street parking, and indoor and outdoor opportunities for visitors to engage with the community’s history.
Anthony Museum Board of Trustees Chair Craig Zicari shares, “Deborah Hughes has been the guiding force and visionary for the Museum since assuming the role of CEO in 2007. She has shepherded its growth; she got the Museum through COVID; and she has been the primary force behind the development and design of the campus expansion with the construction of the new interpretive center. That project will enable the Museum to provide access to its archives, to support the growth of the neighborhood and revitalization of the Bull’s Head area, and to expand its ability to share Susan B. Anthony’s life and story with the community. We thank her for her dedication and hard work as the CEO, and we look forward to her involvement in completing the campus expansion project.”
The Museum has acquired the necessary properties for the planned expansion. Site and exterior plans for the new building and parking areas on Jefferson Avenue have met with City and Zoning approval, and interior design is in the final stages, to be completed by the end of the year. The Susan B. Inspires Me! Campaign has raised $16.4 million toward the project, with an additional $5-6 million in gifts and pledges needed before the project can break ground in 2026.
The Anthony Museum’s mission is to “maintain and share Susan B. Anthony’s National Historic Landmark, historic properties, and collections; promote historical scholarship; and welcome guests to programs and exhibits related to her life, work, and influence. By interpreting how and why Susan B. Anthony changed the world, we inspire change-making.” The Anthony Museum’s vision is “to inspire our local, national and global communities with the life and work of Susan B. Anthony. Like her, we believe that humanity, equality, justice, and liberty are central to a community of, by, and for all people.”
Prior to joining the Anthony Museum, Hughes worked for 25 years as an ordained minister, serving Presbyterian and American Baptist Churches in New York and Michigan. She was on the executive staff of the Ministers and Missionaries Benefit Board in New York, New York, and also served as Vice President for Development at Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School in Rochester.
Hughes will retire at the end of the year, and will support the new CEO and specific projects into early 2026. The Board is conducting a national search for the new CEO and plans to hire in Fall 2025.
