JACKSONVILLE, FLA.- The Cummer Museum of Art & Gardens welcomes Tonya McCain as its new Program Manager! Tonya earned a BFA in Painting and Sculpture from Middle Tennessee State University and cut her teeth in the art museum world working for the Frist Center for the Visual Arts in Nashville, Tennessee. At the Frist Center, Tonya planned and executed museum programming and managed the summer camp program for children. Tonya left the Frist Center to pursue a Master’s Degree in art education from The Ohio State University. Her studies focused on applying principles of art education, narrative inquiry, and criticism in a museum setting. Following graduation, Tonya supported her husband during a career change. Four years, four moves, and a medical degree later, the family is grateful to finally call Jacksonville home.

Tonya agrees with Kurt Vonnegut who famously pointed out that, “To practice any art, no matter how well or badly, is a way to make your soul grow.” She believes that the arts hold a unique power to evoke growth. She hopes that her time spent with the Cummer Museum will promote that growth by supporting and contextualizing the world-class art that the Museum proudly presents to the Jacksonville community.

For more than 50 years, the Cummer Museum of Art & Gardens has been committed to engaging and inspiring through the arts, gardens, and education. A permanent collection of more than 5,000 objects and historic gardens on a riverfront campus offers more than 165,000 annual visitors a truly unique experience on the First Coast. Nationally-recognized education programs serve adults and children of all abilities.