Russell D. “Tim” White
Yale Peabody Museum (retired)
Tim White Museum Consulting LLC
At the 2025 annual meeting of the Society, the Carolyn L. Rose Award was presented to Suzanne Boyer McLaren from the Carnegie Museum of Natural History. Sue is the tenth recipient of the award.
The Carolyn L. Rose Award is our Society’s highest honor and is given to a person whose work and efforts have promoted the values and objectives of the Society. This award is very meaningful to Sue, as she worked closely with Carolyn Rose during the formative years of the Society for the Preservation of Natural History Collections (SPNHC).
Sue’s career at the Carnegie began in 1977 as a curatorial assistant in the Section of Mammals, and as you will see, Sue is not an individual who wades into the shallow end of the pool, but some one who dives into the deepest part of the ocean. It wasn’t long before Sue assumed the role of Collections Manager for the Sections of Mammals at the Carnegie, and she very quickly showed her innate leadership abilities. She served on search committees, task forces, and working groups at the Carnegie, including strategic planning and AAM accreditation, and as the Section head for the Section of Mammals and Conservation, respectively, supervised several staff along the way, and served as the Chair of Collections Committee at the Carnegie for many years. In 2006, Sue was the AAM Accreditation Coordinator for the Carnegie, a daunting task, and some would say herding cats might be easier.
Sue was an early advocate for digitizing collections and served as the PI on Institute of Museum and Library Services, National Science Foundation, and other grants. She advised other institutions in databasing and establishing best practices for their collections, including a trip to India in the late 1980s, where she advocated for collections management best practices.
In the 1980s, she advocated for the impact of databasing specimen data and the support of collections management activities. She often spoke about the “Computer as a Collections Management Tool,” and in 1988, Sue published an article in the SPNHC Newsletter about databasing and collections management that got many people thinking about how they could use “personal computers” as part of their collection activities.
Sue served as Treasurer of the Society for five years and received the President’s Award for her contributions to the Society in 1993. She served on 12 SPNHC committees over the years, mostly in leadership roles, and was a Member-at-Large from 1994 to 1997. In 1998, Sue was elected President of SPNHC, which carries a six-year commitment as president-elect, president, and past-president. While Sue was president, she built relationships with other collections preservation groups such as AIC and Heritage Preservation, and promoted the Heritage Health Index, the first comprehensive surveys of the conditions and preservation needs for all museums in America. And some might say that was enough, but not Sue. To quote Lisa Palmer from the Smithsonian, Sue is a resource of incomparable quality, not only for our Society, but for the natural history community as a whole (personal communication, 2024).
About the time that her various roles in SPNHC were slowing down, she began a more active role in the American Society of Mammalogists (ASM). Over the past 25 years, she supported 16 committees and served on their Board of Directors, not once, but twice. In 2006, Sue began a six-year term as president-elect, president, and past president of ASM. In fact, Sue was only the third woman to be elected president and the first non-PhD in 50 years to hold that position. As a person whose career has focused on collection stewardship, and not research, this is incredibly impressive.
Sue’s influence extended beyond her formal roles at the Carnegie, deeply impacting the natural history community through mentorship and advocacy. To quote Cindy Ramotnik, former Collections Manager of the US Geological Survey mammal collections in Albuquerque, New Mexico: Sue’s incredible work ethic, humility, and generosity have left a lasting impression on countless individuals. Through her selfless contributions, Sue has advanced the profession by promoting collections, collaboration, and the pursuit of excellence within the profession. She has tirelessly championed these core values, ensuring that they remain at the heart of the Society’s mission (personal communication, 2024).
Her dedication to advancing the field of collections management is evident in the numerous roles she has played in ASM and SPNHC, as well as the guidance she has provided to emerging professionals. Sue’s contributions have not only enriched the institutions she has worked with but have also set a standard of excellence that continues to inspire others. But her engagement in her community is not limited to natural history. She has served as a judge for many Science Fairs in the Pittsburgh area. For 18 years, Sue served as the Judge of Elections for her district of Pittsburgh and was the person who certified election results. And considering recent events in America, we can all appreciate the importance of this role.
Suzanne Boyer McLaren is a very worthy recipient of the Carolyn L. Rose Award. The impact she has had in the natural history community should be an inspiration to all involved in SPNHC and the natural history community.
ls and how to apply to