A nonprofit leader with broad experience in science, education, law, and advocacy for people with disabilities, Tim Ritchie is president of Boston’s Museum of Science.     

A nationally recognized figure in science education, Ritchie chairs the board of the Association of Science and Technology Centers. He is a member of the Boston Green Ribbon Commission’s Cultural Institutions Working Group and sits on BioConnects New England’s advisory board.   

Ritchie previously led two other noted science centers—the Tech Interactive in California’s Silicon Valley and McWane Science Center in Birmingham, Alabama. Early in his career, his legal practice included service in a poverty law clinic and representation of people on death row. He later guided the creation of educational programs for children in low-income families in Birmingham, then led a Kentucky nonprofit serving adults with developmental disabilities.     

“I have a deep appreciation for forward-looking, mission-driven institutions and the crucial role they play in creating healthy communities. I also have a strong commitment to advancing human dignity through my work as a lawyer, a disabilities advocate, and a leader of organizations focused on education and community service. At its best, Harvard is a beacon for how education and new knowledge can change lives for the better. Universities have an obligation to educate graduates who can create a world worth living in—one that’s humane and sustainable, one that celebrates diversity and embraces everyone.”  

A graduate of the Harvard Kennedy School, Ritchie has worked closely with Harvard academic departments to develop innovative programming for the Museum of Science.