Financial leader of museum brings extensive business and nonprofit experience

Sunny Reed
Image courtesy of Brittany Erwin Photography

INDIANAPOLIS – The Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art has hired a new vice president of administration and chief financial officer: Sunny Reed, who brings extensive experience in finance, nonprofit management and the retail sector.

Reed, an Indianapolis resident, joined the Eiteljorg staff in November 2021 as director of finance and controller. For the past three months, she has served as interim vice president of administration and CFO, following the retirement of Sue McDermott from that position. Reed’s promotion to museum vice president and CFO took effect recently.

In her new role, Reed will continue to manage the museum’s accounting, finances and human resources, and also take on new responsibilities managing the earned revenue areas that include Guest Services, the Museum Store, Museum Café and event rentals business.

“Sunny Reed has a solid track record of developing and implementing policies and procedures to improve the overall flow of accounting in nonprofit organizations, which greatly impressed the search committee. With her deep knowledge and experience, Sunny is tenacious, strategic and collaborative, and I am looking forward to working with her as part of the Eiteljorg’s senior leadership team,” Eiteljorg President and CEO Kathryn Haigh said.

Reed came to the Eiteljorg after serving as vice president of finance at HVAF of Indiana, Inc., a nonprofit that works to end homelessness among veterans. She led HVAF through a major system implementation and automated key processes to better serve the organization’s client base and mission. Prior to her time at HVAF of Indiana, Reed served as controller of Lambda Chi Alpha Fraternity Headquarters for several years where she, alongside the CFO, was instrumental in improving systems, processes and the overall accounting function of the organization.

Earlier in her career, she worked in retail management for corporations such as Dollar General and Sam’s Club where she made significant improvements in store inventory control, performance and profitability and in the overall operations at the locations she supervised. Relocating to Indianapolis in 2013 with the Sam’s Club corporation, she completed her graduate degree in accounting while serving as controller of Lambda Chi Alpha Fraternity Headquarters.

Reed holds a master’s degree in accounting from American Public University in Charlestown, W.V., a bachelor’s degree in business studies from Newman University in Wichita, Kansas, and is a Blackbaud-certified Financial Edge Professional.

“I am excited to continue serving the Eiteljorg in a greater capacity. Dedicating my time and talents to the not-for-profit sector where sustainable differences can be made while serving an impactful mission is something I am very passionate about,” Reed said. “As a lover of arts and culture, I look forward to continuing to contribute to the meaningful and necessary work of telling the stories of the Indigenous peoples of North America and the American West and making those experiences accessible to all.”

About the Eiteljorg
A cultural pillar for 34 years in downtown Indianapolis’ scenic White River State Park, the Eiteljorg Museum seeks to inspire an appreciation and understanding of the arts, histories and cultures of the Native peoples of North America and the diverse peoples of the American West by telling amazing stories. Located on the Central Canal at 500 West Washington St., the Eiteljorg is a 501c3 nonprofit organization.

Media Contacts
Bryan Corbin
Public Relations Manager
317.275.1315
bcorbin@eiteljorg.com

Bert Beiswanger
Director of Marketing and Communications
317.275.1317
bbeiswanger@eiteljorg.com

Brooke Sullivan
Digital Marketing Manager
317.275.1388
bsullivan@eiteljorg.com