A new head of the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County was scheduled to be sworn in today.
Geologist Lori Bettison-Varga was named in July to replace Jane Pisano as the president and director of the museum. Pisano has served in the role since 2001.
Bettison-Varga comes to NHM after six years as president at Scripps College in Claremont, where she boosted the college’s national presence and visibility, leading to a 20 percent increase in application admissions.
She raised more than $115 million in gifts and pledges during that time, and the college recorded a budget surplus in each year of her tenure.
Bettison-Varga earned her B.A. from UC Santa Barbara and her doctorate at UC Davis before joining the faculty of Pomona College and then serving in a variety of teaching and administrative positions, including as provost and dean of faculty at Whitman College in Walla Walla, Washington, immediately before joining Scripps College.