ELDON — The American Gothic House Visitor Center has gained another friend — professional curator Jessi Strom.

Strom, 27, of Fort Dodge, has been hired as the new Gothic House administrator. She starts the job Monday.

“I wanted to get back into museum work, so this was a perfect fit,” she said Wednesday during an interview with the Courier. “[The Gothic House] is part of our American culture, and history, too. I think the museum is going to try to pull all that together.”

The 2002 University of Iowa graduate has helped run museums and theaters, either working “up front” hiring and supervising staff, or “backstage” doing hands-on work to get ready for exhibitions and shows.

“She is everything we wanted,” said Priscilla Coffman of the American Gothic Committee. “She fits the bill — and we had a big bill.”

Coffman said the hiring committee wanted someone who understood museum displays, could set up a Web site, manage a gift shop and be a “people person who can switch gears and serve anyone who comes.”

Coffman said an advertisement in the local paper brought lots of great applicants, including a Harvard graduate and candidates with master’s degrees. Committee members had been hoping for at least two or three applications. They got more than 30 and interviewed six candidates.

While they eventually picked Strom, Strom remembers the point during the interview that helped her decide to take the job.

“I think one thing that really convinced me was when I asked the committee members their favorite memories from working on the project,” said Strom. “To see the amount of enthusiasm they had was really exciting and made me want to work with them.”

“She knows more than we do,” said Coffman, “and she has lots and lots of ideas. We’ve been waiting for her.”

In addition to museum operations for the visitor center, Strom knows how to set up memberships in an organization. Because while the gift shop will have what Coffman called “fun, local” items for sale, that may not be enough to keep the center financially viable, something which has been important to volunteers throughout the process.

“That is our goal that we will not be a liability or a drag on the county,” said Coffman.

As the Gothic House administrator, Strom is considered a Wapello County Conservation employee. Her salary will be $29,000 per year.

Strom said when she arrives she will need to catch up with committee members and others who thave been working on the center. But she’ll have more than administration ahead of her.

“The grand opening is June 9 ... at 1:30 p.m.,” said Coffman. “Four days after, we have 100 kids coming from Keosauqua.”