Political Science Class of '74, '05HD Gary Beer has served as chief executive officer of Smithsonian Business Ventures since its creation in 1999. Smithsonian Business Ventures was created to maintain and expand Smithsonian’s commercial revenue to support its mission as an educational and research organization.

With a staff of 500, Mr. Beer presides over all Smithsonian for-profit business activities, including Smithsonian magazines, museum shops, mail-order catalogs, concessions and e-commerce.

Previously, Mr. Beer served as president and chief executive officer of Sundance Group, the for-profit arm of the Sundance organization founded by Robert Redford. At Sundance, he organized the Sundance Film Festival and founded the Sundance Catalog Co. and the Sundance Channel Cable Network.

In addition to receiving his degree in political science from Roger Williams University in 1974, Mr. Beer returned to campus in 2005 to receive an honorary doctorate of business management.