KENNESAW, Ga. | Mar 24, 2025

Walking through the exhibits at the Tellus Science Museum in Cartersville, Georgia, it’s not uncommon for Christen Knickerbocker ’24 to see something that catches her eye. Sometimes she pauses to admire the museum’s iconic dinosaur skeleton, while other days she notes one of the precious gemstones in its expansive collection.

Though the recent Kennesaw State University master’s graduate works as collection manager at Tellus – cataloguing acquisitions and staying behind the scenes – she does occasionally walk the floor to admire the Curatorial Department’s work.

“I’ve been to a lot of museums in my life, and I always wondered about working at one,” she said. “Tellus has part of my heart because it’s so varied in what is displayed here.”

Knickerbocker started her journey as a child, growing up in Washington, D.C., visiting the Smithsonian museums often. She stayed connected to museums as a patron in Pittsburgh, where she lived previously. In 2014, she and her family moved to the Atlanta area in search of a warmer climate.

The mother of four has a bachelor’s degree and previous work experience and volunteered in various community groups but after she saw a Facebook advertisement for KSU’s Master of Arts in Art and Design program, she considered the prospect of a full-time job at a museum.

“It’s a one-year program completely online, which worked great for me,” she said. “I saw the ad one evening, started the application, and requested my undergraduate transcript that same day. In the morning, I told my husband I was going back to school.”

Once enrolled, Knickerbocker chose the program’s museum studies concentration. The coursework gave her a robust understanding of issues impacting museums as well as the practice of electronic cataloguing. Additionally, she took art courses that gave her a different perspective on the items museums choose to display.

Students in the program complete a capstone project as well as volunteer for organizations across the region. Knickerbocker had 700 volunteer hours by the time she finished her master’s degree.  She helped design a feature wall for an ongoing exhibit, “Patents and the Future,” which highlights the way patents have fueled innovation in America. Shortly thereafter, Tellus offered her the newly created position of collections manager.

“It had been in the works for a while, and when I was volunteering, they would ask me questions like, if I were to hire on, whether I’d prefer to manage collections or build exhibits,” she said. “As a volunteer I had done a lot of both. There is a need to have a full-time individual as collections manager so the curator can focus on caring for the collection and working with donors.”

Knickerbocker oversees inventory, photography, and cataloging new objects that arrive. She also creates paperwork for deeds of gift, thank-you letters, incoming loans, and outgoing loan renewals. She works with a curator in creating and updating paperwork for quarterly collections committee meetings.

After nine months on the job, Knickerbocker said the novelty remains. She works in a brightly lit room with rows of shelves and drawers full of artifacts. However, she enjoys the occasional walk through the museum to see the chattering groups of schoolchildren that take in the sights.

“It’s a wonderful job,” she said. “I work with an experienced team and feel fulfillment in what we are accomplishing.”.”

– Story by Dave Shelles

Photos by Judith Pishnery

A leader in innovative teaching and learning, Kennesaw State University offers undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral degrees to its more than 47,000 students. Kennesaw State is a member of the University System of Georgia with 11 academic colleges. The university’s vibrant campus culture, diverse population, strong global ties, and entrepreneurial spirit draw students from throughout the country and the world. Kennesaw State is a Carnegie-designated doctoral research institution (R2), placing it among an elite group of only 8 percent of U.S. colleges and universities with an R1 or R2 status. For more information, visit kennesaw.edu.