Dear Laura, I can only say that this a major conflict of interest. Can you only start to imagine how this person will undoubtedly influence the board to make decisions he/she would like to be made? Not to mention the issue of raises: will he/she leave the room when he/she is considered as an employee and his/her salary/performance is discussed? Even if he/she did, there is still a distinct possibility for preliminary political groundwork which will ensure that the board's decision will be favorable. How about firing an employee? How about firing the director (technically, the curator's superior)? Will the curator have a say in that? If so, the curator is actually more influential than the director, which makes no sense. In a more theoritical sense, the board's job is to supervise the director, whom in turn supervises all other employees. The board's functions are to implement policies, to allocate and raise funds, to do some p.r. on behalf of the museum and to exercise a general surveillance on spending. The director's job is to implement the board's policies, to reach the long-term goals set by the boards and to ensure the museum's professional functions. The curator's job is to exercise one of those functions. Confuse jobs and you'll end up with a lot of chiefs in the place... All in all, something to avoid at all cost. Hervé Gagnon, Ph.D. Laura Bajuk a écrit: > Does anyone know of a case where a paid curator+ED [or other employee] can > also run for and sit on the board of directors of his employing institution - > as a peer? > > I welcome your reference to such institutions which allow[ed] this practice, > and the pro or con to such action. > > MANY thanks for your help... Laura