George Ford’s cover illustration for Sharon Ray Mathis’ “Ray Charles” shows the young musician with his hands spread over a piano, lips curved into a smile of joy.

The board of directors for the National Center for Children’s Illustrated Literature (NCCIL) announced today that Trish Dressen was hired to lead the museum as its executive director effective March 1.

An exhibit three years in the making opens Thursday at the National Center for Children’s Illustrated Literature, 102 Cedar St.

Melissa Sweet opens her first solo exhibition at the NCCIL.