Mark Tullos

The new president and CEO of the Mississippi & Entertainment Experience is no stranger to Mississippi or the South after having grown up in Baton Rouge and having graduated from Baton Rouge High.

Mark Tullos, 56, was hired two weeks ago for the dual position after a national search firm, Arts Consulting Group, sought to hire the right fit for the position. To Tullos, he fit perfectly.

“My wife and I are in a position where we didn’t want to make any mistakes. Meridian just felt like home,” Tullos said Tuesday at THE MAXX offices on Front Street. “We thought about it for a long time. The Museum Board was looking at us very carefully. Neither the Board nor we took it very lightly. At the end of the day, we just felt it was destined to be.

“The search firm was looking for people who were familiar with the people and culture,” Tullos said. “I had all those qualities and that is going to help me in my work here.”

Tullos has more than 30 years experience as a museum executive. He previously served as assistant secretary for the Louisiana Office of State Museums in the Department of Culture and Tourism, which oversees nine museum facilities in Louisiana. He also served as executive director for museums in Texas and Florida.

Tullos was also founding director of the Walter Anderson Museum of Art in Ocean Springs and oversaw construction and opening of that museum in 1991. He said it was in Ocean Springs where he learned of the great talent the state had to offer.

“I got to know a lot of great talents here in Mississippi and met many of them in person,” Tullos said. “This is a great opportunity to see what the arts can do for the economy in a city like Meridian. The new museum is going to capture a lot of tourist dollars off the interstates. That will mean more jobs and an improved quality of life for everyone here.”

Tullos succeeds Marty Gamblin in the executive role. Gamblin will continue in a leadership and consulting role, including active involvement in the museum’s Walk of Fame and Hall of Fame programs.

“Marty is the historian for the museum because he knows all the artists,” Tullos said. “He’s very valuable to the opening of the museum.”

Tullos, who will earn $125,000, said he will be in charge of construction, budgets, management and staff.

“This Museum is going to have a budget exceeding $3 million per year. We anticipate hiring between 15-20 full-time staff members and some part-time staffers,” Tullos said. “We’re hoping to recruit a large body of volunteers in the community.”

Tullos has plenty of experience opening a museum.

“I always like a challenge. This will be my fourth museum to build and open, so it’s always fun to do,” Tullos said. “It’s always fun to do things right the first time instituting policy, staffing and training. We’re going to do this right. We talk about immersive experiences in museums a lot in the 21st Century. This museum will be groundbreaking like no other museum in the country. It will be pretty amazing.”

For months, the scheduled opening was targeted for December 2017. A press release announcing Tullos as the new president/CEO gave the opening as early 2018. The press release also described ACG President Bruce Thibodeau termed Tullos as a “visionary.”

Early estimates had 150,000 people visiting the museum each year. Tullos said that number is strong.

“I’ve always had a passion for museums and how they can be better educational tools for a community,” Tullos said. “The other piece of that is that the economy will be important for the community. If we market this in the right way, we’ll see that many people at the museum every year. Thirteen million people pass by on the interstates every year and if we can get a fraction of that, Meridian will do very well.”

Tullos said he was grateful for all the work put into the museum before his arrival. He said construction on the building should begin in about two weeks.

“I want to thank the community for their patience and support for this project,” Tullos said. “I’m here for the final piece of this. I’m here to help make the vision come true. I’m not a visionary, but all the people who have been working on this for the last 10 years or more are the visionaries.”