Staff Profile
Associate Director of Academic Engagement and Campus Partnerships and Research Curator
jennifer_thum@harvard.edu / 617-495-8003
Ph.D., Brown University
M.Phil., University of Oxford
B.A., Barnard College
Trained as an Egyptologist, Jen Thum’s work sits at the intersection of museum education and ancient art. She creates interdisciplinary learning experiences for students across the university, oversees the Graduate Student Teacher Program, teaches courses and workshops about object-based learning, and researches and teaches with the museums’ ancient Egyptian collection. Thum has a deep interest in museum pedagogy and is committed to celebrating the learning potential of works of art for students and the public.
Recent Publications
Jen Thum, Carl Walsh, Lissette Jiménez, and Lisa Saladino Haney (eds.). 2024. Teaching Ancient Egypt in Museums: Pedagogies in Practice. London: Routledge.
Thum, Jen. 2023. “Taking the Nature of Things at Face Value, in Ancient Egypt and in Museums.” RISD Manual 18: 75-87.
“Learning from the Lintel of Ptahshepses Impy at the Harvard Art Museums.” In In the House of Heqanakht: Text and Context in Ancient Egypt. Studies Presented in Honor of James P. Allen, ed. M. Lehner, V. Almansa-Villatoro, and S. Štubňová. Leiden: Brill, 2023.
“Activating the Ancient World with Museum Collections.” In An Educator’s Handbook for Teaching about the Ancient World, ed. Pınar Durgun, 25–36. Oxford: Archaeopress, 2020.
Thum, Jen, with drawings by Hannah Herrick. Coloring Ancient Egypt. Index (May 21, 2020).
“A Salve for Your Snake Bites.” Index (July 29, 2020).