“You have to be very, very comfortable with making mistakes.”
Laura Ybarra-Kane, a native of Columbia, South Carolina, services as the Manager of Education and Interpretation Planning at the South Carolina State Museum. She holds an Anthropology of Education in Museum Studies degree from the University of South Carolina.
About
Laura Ybarra-Kane discovered her passion and career path at a young age. When visiting family in San Antonio at age four, Kane remembered walking into the planetarium and hearing Star Trek’s Captain Picard speak to her. She was in awe. She remembered, “I went into this planetarium and was like this is it! This is what I want to do, this is amazing.”
From then on, Kane kept her passion throughout her school journey to follow the path that would lead her to a career in museums. When transitioning to college, Kane went with the mindset of wanting to be able to work in museums, but she didn’t have a clear understanding of the field. “I went into college with many different majors, but I ended up landing on the Anthropology of Education and Museum Studies,” said Kane.
After receiving her degree from the University of South Carolina, Kane began volunteering at her current job, the South Carolina State Museum in Columbia. As a volunteer, Kane gave tours and worked with the curating team for six months before being hired part-time. For five years, Kane traveled with a portable planetarium, teaching students the wonders of astrology, before transitioning to the EdVenture Children’s Museum, also in Columbia. After five years with EdVenture, learning and working within schools, Kane returned to the South Carolina State Museum as Manager of Education and Interpretation Planning.
As Manager, Kane has many different duties and responsibilities, and so her typical workday includes wearing many different hats. As an interpreter, she observes how individuals interact with each exhibit within the museum and how they interpret the space they are in. As management of education, Kane assists with all things that involve teaching. “We do all things education and inspiring wonder,” said Kane. Additionally, Kane oversees all accessibility efforts at the museum and serves as the liaison for South Carolina on education resources.
Among all her work and experience, the project she is most proud of at EdVenture was opening the first Makerspace in South Carolina. “That one stands out with me as the first time I got to do a lot of experience and a lot of mistakes,” said Kane. She also offers advice to upcoming creatives interested in a career within the museum field: “Just try it, see what you like because you never know what you might find.”
