Samantha Peterson

Samantha Peterson is the Manager of Special Projects and Senior Advisor to the Director in the Smithsonian Institution’s Global Affairs. She supports the development and planning of global pan-Institutional programs and advises Smithsonian leadership on international policy, strategy, and communications. She also supports the Institution's engagement with diplomatic delegations and stewards Smithsonian relationships with foreign embassies and government ministries. Dr. Peterson came to the Smithsonian as an ACLS/Mellon Public Postdoctoral Fellow to develop mission-driven, revenue-generating global activities in the cultural sector. She earned her BA in French from Williams College and her MA and PhD in French Literature at Boston University where she analyzed the narrative power of the female body in the work of Émile Zola. She is fluent in French and has forgotten most of her Italian, and loves to explore new destinations through local food, wine, and art.