Meanwhile... at the Museum

Cincinnati is known around the world for our fossils from the Ordovician period, and Cincinnati Museum Center has the largest collection of Ordovician fossils there is. The keeper of that collection is our Curator of Invertebrate Paleontology, Dr. Brenda Hunda, and today we're digging into her story. We'll talk about her childhood spend exploring Royal Canadian Air Force bases, her switch from dinosaurs to trilobites, her double blackbelt and a whole lot more.

It's July 2026, and that means we're commemorating 250 years since America's Declaration of Independence. Cincinnati Museum Center is fortunate to care for documents dating to the Revolutionary era and the early days of the republic, including a rare July 1776 printing of the Declaration of Independence, which is on display from July 3 to August 23 2026. Today, we're talking about these founding documents and what they tell us about our country 250 years later. Katherine Gould, Curator of History Objects and Fine Art, and Jill Beitz, Manager of Reference and Research at Cincinnati Museum Center discuss some of the crucial documents in the country's history and within our own collections at Cincinnati Museum Center. 

It's the 250th anniversary of American independence, and that's got us thinking a lot about history. So we called up our friend, colleague, and in Cody's case, former college history professor, Dr. Kimberly Hamlin. Listen in as we talk about Dr. Hamlin's work as a historian and author, discuss big questions like when past events become history, and doing research in the age of AI. Warning: this episode will make you think deeply about the very philosophy of history and also want to get some ice cream. 

After 36 years at Cincinnati Museum Center, archaeologist Bob Genheimer is retiring. In this episode, Bob digs into a career spent uncovering the human stories he's discovered. Along the way, he shares why archaeology is about people and makes a strong argument in the archaeologist vs. paleontologist debate.

LEGO Jurassic World The Exhibition is now open at Cincinnati Museum Center (May 22 2026 - Jan. 4 2027)! To celebrate, we chatted with the leader of the Brickman Team, Ryan McNaught, about how he became The Brickman, his role as a judge on LEGO Masters Australia and what it takes to design and build an exhibit full of large scale and life size dinosaurs made from LEGO Bricks.

Cincinnati Museum Center wouldn't be what it is without the hundreds of volunteers who greet guests, take tickets, guide tours, catalogue the collections, and so much more. But coordinating those volunteers is a job all its own. In this episode, we chat with Cordel George Jr., Manager of Volunteer and Intern Services at Cincinnati Museum Center, about what it takes to run a large and diverse volunteer program and the impact our volunteers have across every part of the museum. And Cordel reflects on his path from history student to educator, his personal journey of uncovering his ancestry and how these experiences shaped his perspective on community and service. 

Go behind the scenes with Sarah Staples, Helen Steiner Rice Archives Manager at Cincinnati Museum Center, as she shares what it takes to preserve the documents that give us a better understanding of the past. 
In this episode, Sarah Staples discusses her work managing over 1,300 collections ranging from business records to personal correspondences, playing "history detective" to reveal the deeply human side of history and the challenges of preserving modern history in the digital age.

Wild Rescue is a film that celebrates the wildlife heroes who care for, rehab and release animals in need, focused on Santa Barbara Wildlife Care Network. We talked to SBWCN's Executive Director, Ariana Katovich, about what it takes to run a rescue that cares for thousands of animals every year, and get a behind the scenes view of Wild Rescue. 

Cincinnati Museum Center is a place that people form a lifelong connection with. Case in point - today's guest, Kelsey Enderle. From visiting as a kid, to working in Camps and overnight programs in college, to her current role as Associate Vice President of Guest Engagement, Kelsey keeps coming back to CMC. We talk to Kelsey about her long history with CMC, her time in the Disney College Program and status as resident Disney Adult, her advice for getting into CMC's Summer Camps and more!

You may not know it, but you’ve probably already seen some of the work of our guest this week, Ian Shive. From documentaries aired during Shark Week to contributions to major Hollywood films of the early 2000s, Ian has had a long career in film and media. All of that has led up to his latest directorial release: Wild Rescue, a film for giant screens (like the domed screen in our OMNIMAX Theater!) that depicts the real-life heroes who rescue, rehabilitate and release wild animals in need. We’ll chat with Ian about how Wild Rescue got started, get some behind the scenes detail of making the movie and what it’s like to work with wild animals.