Molly Baker

Manager, HOPE Crew

Molly Baker is a historic building preservationist serving as the manager of the HOPE Crew program at the National Trust for Historic Preservation. She previously worked as facility manager and later as site director at a National Historic Landmark site in Louisiana. Molly was drawn to the HOPE Crew program through her commitment to passing preservation trades skills on to a younger and more diverse generation. She holds an A.S. in Historic Building Preservation from Belmont College and a B.A. in History from Northwestern State University. In 2023–2024, Molly was honored to be named the Harrison Goodall Preservation Fellow. During her fellowship, she explored ways to increase accessibility to preservation trades training, raise awareness of trades, and address the growing need for traditional trades practitioners. Her research resulted in the Preservation Trades Program Creation Guide, an interactive website and downloadable roadmap designed to help smaller regions launch their own preservation trades training opportunities.