Meet our Leadership Team
Shane Tippett
Executive Director
Working at the Garden since 2004, and serving as Executive Director since 2011, Shane Tippett is honored to work with the remarkable people who steward Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden’s 82 acres, including 4 lakes, 15 distinct outdoor gardens encompassing 50 intensely cultivated acres, a conservatory and 5,500 unique genera of plants. Each year Garden staff teach, energize and engage over 18,000 students in 850 education programs. This cadre of identified learners is just a fraction of the 350,000 visitors who discover what a garden can mean for body and spirit as well as the mind. In recent years the Garden has been honored with inclusion in a number of top ten lists for botanical gardens in North America. For the 700+ volunteers and 72 FTE staff, the honors serve as spurs for continued commitment and effort.
Learn More About ShaneKim Dove
CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER
Kim began her career at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden in 2005, working in the Facility Events department. She quickly moved up, becoming Director of Guest Services then Chief Operating Officer where she currently oversees the Garden’s enterprise revenue centers (Admissions, Facility Events and the Garden Shop), and support departments (IT, Operations, Maintenance and Security). Kim leads and manages 32+ Garden staff.
Learn More About KimDuron Chavis
Manager of Community Engagement
Duron started his career in community advocacy at the Black History Museum and Cultural Center of VA. While there, he founded the highly acclaimed Happily Natural Day festival; a weekend-long experience that focuses on cultural awareness, health, wellness and social change. Duron has devoted his career to iterating sustainable solutions to racial inequity in the city of Richmond. He is an advocate for urban greening as a multi-faceted tool for community empowerment. He is an alumnus of Leadership Metro Richmond, Style Weekly’s Top 40 under 40, Richmond’s Person of the Year, and the Style Weekly Power List.
Learn More about DuronKristin Thoroman
Director of Education and Exhibitions
Kristin has been a part of the Garden team since the fall of 2010, when she joined the Children’s Garden staff as the Early Childhood Program Developer. Her passion for connecting people led into the role of Exhibitions Manager, where she worked closely with colleagues, volunteers, and the community to develop and produce exhibitions that complemented the inherent beauty of the Garden while providing new and innovative opportunities for visitor engagement. As the Director of Education and Exhibitions, Kristin now leads a team of 16 full-time equivalent employees with the goal of engaging visitors of all backgrounds and ages—from toddlers to seniors— in active experiential learning.
Learn More About KristinAlice Baker
Director of Advancement
Alice has worked in higher education and nonprofit organizations since 1998 and brings to the Garden her strong background of successful fundraising experience. She is known for building collaborative relationships and her deep sense of commitment to the community. She oversees all charitable contributions to the Garden, including Annual Fund, Corporate Giving and Planned Gifts.
Learn More About AliceJohn Morse
Director of Horticulture
John Morse shows a deep commitment to education and public gardens. He has experience at some of the country’s finest gardens including New York Botanical Garden, Cornell Botanical Gardens, Frelinghuysen Arboretum, Willowwood Arboretum, and Bamboo Brook Historic Garden. John has a master’s in plant pathology and a bachelor’s in ornamental horticulture and botany, both from Cornell University. He is also an International Society of Arboriculture Certified Arborist.
Learn More About JohnBeth Monroe, APR
Public Relations and Marketing Director
Strategic public relations and marketing have helped propel Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden to one of the region’s top destinations and national recognition. With a strong background in nonprofit and higher education, Beth has led public relations and marketing efforts at the Garden for more than 20 years, bringing people and plants together to improve communities. An accredited public relations professoinal (APR), Beth was the 2019 recipient of the Thomas Jefferson Award for Excellence in Public Relations and is a member of Leadership Metro Richmond Leadership Quest Class of 2020.
Learn More About BethFrank Robinson
President Emeritus
Frank retired from the Garden on March 31, 2015. He has provided leadership to the Garden since 1992, first as Executive Director, then as President & CEO, and now as President Emeritus.
Learn More About Frank