Mayor Michael A. Guido appointed Kirt Gross to the position of chief curator of the Dearborn Historical Museum in July, 2006. Gross, formerly curator of research, assumed his new duties upon the retirement of Chief Curator Mary MacDonald. Gross, originally from Livonia, graduated from Livonia Stevenson High School and later moved to Detroit where he attended Wayne State University and earned both a bachelor’s and master’s degree in anthropology. His transition to museum work came as a result of his position as research assistant at Wayne State’s Museum of Anthropology. Following the university, Gross worked in collections management at the Detroit Institute of Arts for several years. In December, 2002, he was hired as the curator of research at the Dearborn Historical Museum. Gross sees the museum as a repository of material culture that is used to gain insight into the past. His mission is to preserve and interpret this material culture for contemporary audiences. Since the City’s museum has grown significantly over the past 50 years, the most pressing issue is to systematically inventory and evaluate the entire collection. Gross is certain this will aid in preservation, efficient access to objects and a reduction in expenditures at storage facilities. He also is working with his staff, the Dearborn Historical Commission, the Museum Guild of Dearborn and the Historical Foundation to evaluate the operation of the museum and develop new strategies while charting a new direction. Working closely with personnel at City Hall, Gross is integrating their recommendations and working aggressively to strengthen a partnership that will result in making the Dearborn Historical Museum an even greater City asset. Gross assesses the City of Dearborn as one of the most historically significant cities in southeastern Michigan, and perhaps the entire state. As such, he considers his role as caretaker of the City’s museum history critical to ensuring that each resident has access to its resources.