Heritage tourism expert to speak at AMSE community meeting Thursday

The last in a series of four community meetings on the American Museum of Science and Energy will feature a state heritage tourism expert.

Lee Waddell Curtis, director of program development and legislative liaison for the Tennessee Department of Tourist Development, will discuss the growth and significance of heritage tourism in Tennessee during a Thursday evening meeting at AMSE.

The community meetings have been sponsored by the City of Oak Ridge and the American Museum of Science and Energy Foundation. They are designed to gather input on the future of AMSE operations.

A press release said Curtis has an extensive background in cultural and heritage tourism, and her responsibilities include overseeing and developing the Tennessee Civil War Trails program and serving as the Tennessee Department of Tourist Development’s heritage tourism contact. In addition, she represents the department on several national and statewide organizations, and served as a board member of the state’s Sesquicentennial Commission.

She also assists in the development of related sustainable tourism programs and was instrumental in planning and implementation of the Great Smoky Mountains Sustainable Tourism Summit in 2008, the release said.

Curtis works with counties and communities statewide to assist them with the department’s programs and initiatives. She has also directed the department’s corporate and travel industry sales programs to garner increased travel and revenues for Tennessee, where she was responsible for the promotion and sales of Tennessee to national and international group tour companies, tour bus operators, and other business and travel organizations that influence travel-buying decisions.

The Thursday meeting will be held from 6-8 p.m. at AMSE, located at 300 South Tulane Avenue in Oak Ridge. Registration and light refreshments will be available beginning at 5:30 p.m.

The AMSE was opened in 1949 and is owned by the U.S. Department of Energy. The museum showcases the history of the Manhattan Project and the current scientific, energy, and national security missions carried out by DOE facilities in Oak Ridge. Oak Ridge National Laboratory currently manages the museum for DOE and contributes, along with other major DOE contractors in Oak Ridge, to the museum’s operating costs.

The AMSE Foundation was chartered in September 1996 to support the cultural, educational, and scientific programs of the museum. The Foundation is a 501(c)(3) corporation; the tax-exempt status provides an added benefit to help support a variety of AMSE events and programs. Foundation membership is open to any individual who applies for the appropriate AMSE membership category.

For more information visit www.amse.org or www.oakridgetn.gov.