VERO BEACH, FLA.- The Vero Beach Museum of Art announced the appointment of Suzanne Seldes as its new Deputy Director, one of two strategic leadership moves aimed at strengthening Museum operations and expanding its community impact. Senior Management Team member Sara Klein, who has also taken on additional responsibilities, was named Director of Education and Visitor Experience.

“These leadership positions are essential as we prepare for significant growth at the Museum,” said VBMA Executive Director Brady Roberts. “Suzanne brings a wealth of management experience and has proven very quickly to be a natural for the Deputy Director position, working side-by-side with me on critical strategic and operational issues and opportunities. Sara has been with the VBMA for seven years. She has consistently demonstrated the ability, capacity, and desire to expand her management responsibilities in areas such as education and guest services. We are pleased to promote both leaders from within.”

Seldes joined VBMA in April 2024 as Director of Marketing and Communications and added supervision of the Museum’s technology function in November. A seasoned veteran of media, museum, and tourism industries, Seldes spent nearly a decade at The Strong Museum in Rochester, New York—a national museum with annual visitation exceeding 500,000—where she served as Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer, overseeing multiple departments, leading the museum through a rebranding effort, launching international tourism initiatives, and preparing it for a major expansion.

Seldes moved to Vero Beach in 2018 to work with Indian River State College, where she served as Associate Vice President of Communications. As Deputy Director at VBMA, she will help chart the Museum’s future, advancing the museum’s strategic plan and leading operational areas that include marketing, communications, technology, facilities, human resources, and security. Seldes has a B.A. in Economics from the State University of New York at Stony Brook.

Since joining VBMA in 2018 as Director of Education, Sara Klein has been leading the development and implementation of engaging collection- and exhibition-based programming for audiences of all ages, backgrounds, and abilities. Klein oversees the Museum Art School, two community galleries, and the Art Zone, a children's interactive space. In March 2024, she assumed responsibility for visitor services and reconceptualized it as the “hub” of the Museum. As Director of Education and Visitor Experience, she has responsibility for education, visitor services, and the museum store.

Before VBMA, Klein held management positions at the Amon Carter Museum of American Art in Fort Worth, Texas, and the Gilcrease Museum in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She has an M.A. in Art History from Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida, and a B.A. in Art History and French from Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois.

The Vero Beach Museum of Art is one of Florida’s leading visual arts institutions and one of the nation’s best-attended small museums, as distinguished in March 2025 research by Remuseum. The Museum will celebrate its 40th anniversary in 2026. In 2027, it will open a new facility, doubling its gallery space and providing new venues for its innovative arts education and community access programming.