Akeia de Barros Gomes, Ph.D., is leading the development of the new Edward W. Kane and Martha J. Wallace Center for Black History at the Newport Historical Society in Rhode Island. Set to open in time for Juneteenth (June 19-21), the center is being developed with Gomes as its director, in partnership with Newport’s Black community
Gomes is renowned as a distinguished anthropologist, curator, and academic whose work centers on uncovering and sharing the complex histories of Black and Indigenous communities in New England. Prior to joining the Newport Historical Society, Gomes served as senior curator of Maritime Social Histories at Mystic Seaport Museum; vice president of the American Institute for Maritime Studies; and curator of Social History at New Bedford Whaling Museum. Before her museum career, she was a professor at Wheelock College for nearly a decade.
Raised in Newport, RI, Akeia earned a BA from Salve Regina University, and received a Ph.D. and M.A. in Anthropology with a focus in Archeology, from the University of Connecticut.
Pamela Fisher: ACS Senior Vice President of Inclusion and Belonging
The American Chemical Society (ACS) named Pamela Fisher senior vice president of Inclusion and Belonging, effective May 26, 2026. She will lead efforts to further strengthen inclusion and belonging across ACS’ global organization and help advance ACS’ commitment to ensuring the scientific enterprise benefits from the broadest range of perspectives, experiences and talents.
Fisher brings more than two decades of experience helping global organizations strengthen effectiveness, culture, leadership, and engagement, most recently serving as Chief Inclusion and Diversity Officer at Bristol Myers Squibb. Her career has spanned research and development, technology, talent strategy, and community engagement, and she has helped embed inclusive practices into areas ranging from clinical trial design to AI governance and patient access. She has been recognized for building collaborative, effective partnerships, aligning culture with business strategy, and helping organizations create environments where people can thrive and contribute fully.
“Throughout my career, I’ve been driven by a commitment to build equitable systems that expand opportunity and unlock human potential,” she says.
Prior to Bristol Myers Squibb, Fisher held leadership roles at Johnson & Johnson, Quest Diagnostics, and News Corp/Fox, where she led enterprise-wide inclusion and belonging initiatives spanning culture, leadership development, relationship building, philanthropy, and public affairs. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communications from George Mason University.
