With little to show but enthusiasm, the development staff at the National Constitution Center managed to fund a dream.

By Margaret Battistelli Gardner

That abrupt cutoff of funds was akin to pulling the proverbial rug out from under its feet, especially with a $6.5 million annual operating budget looming. But scary as the transition might seem, there were circumstances that mitigated the fear. The first came thanks to what Seiter calls “brilliant” foresight on the part of her predecessor and the other people who were involved in the project from its start. (Seiter took over as vice president of development in April 2002.)