Katelyn Williams

At Johns Hopkins, Katelyn “KT” Williams is a lecturer for the MA in Cultural Heritage Management program.

Williams has more than 10 years of experience working in museums and in the heritage field, both in the United States and abroad. Currently, she is an academic coordinator and instructor at the Council on International Educational Exchange Berlin, an American nonprofit that facilitates, designs, and promotes study abroad programs in Berlin, Germany. At CIEE, Williams teaches courses that take advantage of the rich history and built heritage of Berlin to encourage immersive learning.

Williams was previously an academic staff member at the Chair of Architectural Conservation at Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus-Senftenberg in Germany, where she developed and taught numerous courses for the Heritage Conservation and Site Management international master’s program and the World Heritage Studies international master’s program. Her research and teaching have focused on the interpretation of difficult heritage, post-war reconstruction, and adaptive reuse in Germany and the Western Balkans, ICCROM’s Living Heritage Approach, queer heritage, and participatory heritage practices.

Prior to pursuing a PhD, Williams worked in the museum field in New York City for several years. As the assistant manager of public programs at New-York Historical Society, she helped to develop and coordinate the museum’s hundred-plus programs per year. Following that, she joined Brooklyn Historical Society (now the Center for Brooklyn History) as the programs and communications coordinator, drawn to the institution’s dedication to critically engaging with history and meaningfully involving the public in the process. At BHS, she developed interactive social media campaigns and public programming that provoked deeper discussions about the museum’s exhibitions.

Williams is an active member of the Association of Critical Heritage Studies, Interpret Europe, and the International Council on Monuments and Sites. She currently works with the bureau of ICOMOS’s Scientific Committee on Twentieth Century Heritage.

Williams earned a Master of Arts in world heritage studies and a PhD from Brandenburg University of Technology. Her master’s thesis focused on developing an interpretation plan for the Teufelsberg Historic Site in Berlin and her PhD dissertation explored the recovery of Islamic sacral heritage in post-conflict Bosnia and Herzegovina.