Alumni Spotlight
A MINT MUSEUM WITH AN NLU TOUCH By Brian Kush
The Mint Museum in Charlotte, North Carolina is the first art museum in the state and the largest in the southeast. The day-to-day operations of this North Carolina landmark are the responsibility of Chief Operating Officer and National Louis University alumna Toni Freeman. Toni, B.A. Education ’78, han- dles the finances, accounting, facility management, and special events for the 77-year-old museum. “I handle everything except the art. When I started on the job the first thing they told me was not to touch the art,” Toni said with a laugh. Toni’s journey to becoming the COO of The Mint Museum started at National Louis University as a student in the College of Education. The Milwau- kee, Wisconsin native liked the convenient loca- tion of National Louis University. It allowed her to live on her own, but still be close enough to go “The skills I learned at National Louis University gave me the ability to take difficult concepts and explain it in terms that people can easily understand.” — Toni Freeman ’78 COO, The Mint Museum home on weekends. Toni lived on campus during her four years at NLU and was very active with her sorority, Delta Sigma Beta. Delta Sigma Beta was a community-service fo- cused sorority and Toni’s time there inspired her to give back throughout her career. In the past, Toni has served as the chair of Women Executives for Community Services, a program that man- ages scholarships for nontraditional students.
Toni Freeman (with her current and senior-year photo) is currently the COO for The Mint Museum in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Toni has also served as board director for Hospice for Charlotte Region and Lincoln County, Teen Health Connection, and Habitat for Humanity. Currently, Toni serves as the President of Junior Leagues Inter- national and is a trustee for the YWCA (Young Wom- en’s Christian Association) of the Central Carolinas. After Toni graduated from National Louis Univer- sity, she continued to work in education at the University of North Carolina in their student affairs department. Even though Toni did not stay in the education field, she credits her education from Na- tional Louis University for equipping her with the skills to succeed in her current position. “The skills I learned at National Louis University, while studying to become a teacher, prepared me for the numerous presentations and various work- shops I give,” Toni said.
“It gave me the ability to take difficult concepts and ex- plain them in terms that people can easily understand.”
As a result of all of Toni’s hard work and service to the community, National Louis University honored her with a Reach award in 2005.
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