Annabel Adams. | Photo: Michael Farmer.
SAN MARINO, Calif.—The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens has appointed Annabel Adams to the position of vice president of communications and marketing. Most recently serving as assistant dean of communications at UCLA’s School of Law, Adams has nearly two decades of experience leading communications and marketing teams in higher education, humanities, and legal and health-technology sectors. Before her role at UCLA, Adams was executive director of marketing and communications at University of California, Irvine’s School of Humanities. She will join The Huntington’s senior leadership staff on Aug. 26.
Adams brings to The Huntington extensive experience in making scholarly works accessible to diverse audiences through creative multimedia storytelling, top-tier media coverage, and even viral social media videos.
“As an innovative humanities communications leader, Annabel shares The Huntington’s deep-seated passion for the liberal arts, believing in their importance to help solve contemporary challenges,” said Karen R. Lawrence, president of The Huntington. “We couldn’t be more excited to bring her on board.”
At The Huntington, Adams will lead a division of 21 staff members responsible for communications, media relations, marketing, graphic design, social media, web content, and publications.
“The Huntington is a storyteller’s dream, brimming with remarkable collections, experiences, and dedicated individuals who bring these stories to life,” Adams said. “I am truly honored to lead the communications and marketing team into this next chapter, continuing their tradition of excellence while exploring new storytelling vehicles to engage and inspire broader audiences.”
During her tenure at UC Irvine, Adams established and led the School of Humanities’ marketing and communications unit, spearheading a multiyear campaign that significantly elevated the visibility of humanities scholarship. Under her leadership, the school earned two gold-level awards from the Council for Advancement and Support of Education. She was also a frequent speaker and collaborator in initiatives to train faculty and graduate students in both the humanities and sciences on effectively communicating their research to the public. To cultivate the next generation of storytellers, she co-developed the English Majors Internship Program, which places the university’s English majors in communications and marketing roles both on and off campus. “My own career path in communications was launched through an internship program at UC Irvine, so it was important to me to pay it forward,” Adams said.
Adams’ breadth of experience includes marketing, branding, media relations, and crisis communication. At both UC Irvine and UCLA, she led the development and implementation of communications and marketing strategies to advance each school’s mission, while also driving measurable increases in reputation, recruitment, and revenue.
Before joining the staff at UC Irvine, Adams was the communications director for a health-technology startup and the national communications coordinator for an international law firm. The daughter of an immigrant from Costa Rica, Adams and her brothers are the first generation in their family to graduate from college. She graduated magna cum laude from UC Irvine with a B.A. in English and holds an M.A. in English from California State University, Long Beach.
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About The Huntington
The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens is a cultural and educational institution of global significance. Building on Henry E. and Arabella Huntington’s renowned collections, The Huntington supports research and promotes education in the arts, humanities, and botanical science through the growth and preservation of its collections; the development of a community of scholars, school programs, and partnerships; and the display and interpretation of its extraordinary resources for diverse audiences. The Huntington is located at 1151 Oxford Road, San Marino, California, 12 miles from downtown Los Angeles. Visitor information: huntington.org.
Contacts:
Keisha Raines, 626-405-2246, kraines@huntington.org
Thea M. Page, 626-405-2260, tpage@huntington.org