Laura Huerta Migus was appointed Deputy Director of the Office of Museum Services in July 2021. She came to IMLS following her tenure as executive director of the Association of Children's Museums (ACM) in Arlington, Virginia, the world's largest professional society promoting and advocating on behalf of children's museums and children’s museum professionals.

Throughout her career, Huerta Migus has been devoted to the growth and education of children, particularly those from underserved and under-resourced communities. Under her leadership, ACM pursued innovative and effective partnerships to leverage the power of children’s museums worldwide.

In 2018, Huerta Migus was named as an Ascend Fellow of the Aspen Institute, and in 2016, she was recognized as a Champion of Change for Summer Opportunity by the White House. She is a noted speaker and author on topics of equity and audience-focused museum practice for institutions including the Board of Science Education of the National Academies of Sciences, the U.S. Play Coalition, and various university texts.

Previously, she served as the director of professional development and equity initiatives at the Association of Science-Technology Centers, Inc., has published articles in peer-reviewed texts, and served as principal investigator on numerous informal learning initiatives.

Since joining IMLS, Huerta Migus has helped the agency establish the American Latino Museum Internship and Fellowship Initiative (ALMIFI). This initiative is designed to strengthen the institutional capacity of American Latino museums, provide paid internship and fellowship opportunities for a diverse range of students, and build connections between colleges, universities, and museums.

She also worked closely with IMLS’ Office of Research and Evaluation to successfully launch the first National Museum Survey (NMS), which will capture the scope and scale of museums’ presence and reach within the U.S. over time. Once mature, the survey will collect foundational, high-level data directly from museums to inform policymakers, the museum field, and the public about the social, cultural, educational, and economic roles that the nation’s diverse museums play in American society.

Huerta Migus holds a bachelor’s degree in Spanish from Texas A&M University and a master’s degree in organization development and leadership from Saint Joseph’s University.