Ralph Cook will become chairman of the board of directors of The Birmingham Museum of Art in September, the first African-American to hold that post in the museum's 60-year history. Cook, an attorney and former associate justice of the Alabama Supreme Court, will serve a three-year term, succeeding Thomas L. Hamby.
"I am personally excited about my upcoming role as chairman of the museum board," Cook said in a release from the museum. "I look forward to working with the board, the City of Birmingham and groups across our region to maintain the high quality that exists at the museum and to continue to work for exhibitions and programs that will appeal to citizens of our city and state."
Since 2001, Cook has been an attorney with the law firm of Hare, Wynn, Newell, and Newton. From 1993 until 2001, he was an associate justice on the Alabama Supreme Court. His extensive background in law also includes a stint as dean of the Miles College Law School.
