We are pleased to announce the latest class of exceptional leaders in The Chief Executive Program: Community and Culture. These 50 executives will work with National Arts Strategies and each other over the next year to address their biggest challenges and lead change throughout the arts and culture sector. We received applications from leaders in 32 states and 13 different countries and were astounded by the level and diversity of community work these leaders are undertaking. This is the third class of The Chief Executive Program. It has evolved from the experience of the past two classes and discussions with arts and culture leaders around the world. National Arts Strategies is continuing the program with a focus on leaders of organizations where community is at the heart of the mission.
“Healthy organizations share deep connections with their communities. We’ve seen that leaders who build and maintain a strong sense of local relevance are creating organizations for both the present and the future. We at NAS progress field-wide change by providing the training and support to these leaders. Having experienced this program and bonded as a community, 50 leaders will have the ideas, tools and connections to effect change in their own organizations and to accelerate their work collectively to strengthen communities and the cultural sector,” said NAS CEO Designate Gail Crider.
The Chief Executive Program is built around two learning cycles that help leaders explore, reflect, apply and share concepts that address the two biggest challenges for cultural institutions – making strategic choices that are on-mission and leading change. Beginning in September 2014 and continuing through 2015, the program includes three in-person educational events at Vanderbilt University, at University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business and at Sundance Resort, as well as a variety of “at-work” activities designed to help leaders move forward on their own unique objectives and goals. These events and activities are designed to give participants a deeper understanding of the strategic challenges they face, a firm grasp of change leadership and the ability to translate their visions for the future into reality.
Participants in The Chief Executive Program were selected following a highly competitive recruitment process to identify the top executive cultural leaders from around the world whose organizations work closely with communities on creative placemaking initiatives. The leaders chosen to participate in The Chief Executive Program were selected from a wide range of cultural forms, locations, perspectives and experience levels. These executives have proven themselves to be effective, innovative, collaborative and open-minded.
Neil Barclay, Contemporary Arts Center (New Orleans, LA)
Jim Beirne, Live Theatre (Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom)
Michael Bobbitt, Adventure Theatre (Glen Echo, MD)
Jennifer Boomgaarden, South Dakota Symphony Orchestra (Sioux Falls, SD)
Tony Butler, Derby Museums Trust (Derby, United Kingdom)
Polly Carl, HowlRound: A Center for Theater Commons (Boston, MA)
Tim Carroll, Bankstown Youth Development Service (Bankstown, Australia)
Serina Chen, Taipei Arts International Association (Taipei, Taiwan)
Uli Sailer Das, Museum at Prairiefire (Overland Park, KS)
Robert Davidson, Seattle Aquarium (Seattle, WA)
Gretchen Dietrich, Utah Museum of Fine Arts (Salt Lake City, UT)
Lucinda Einhouse, Beck Center for the Arts (Lakewood, OH)
Ahmed El Attar, Studio Emad Eddin Foundation (Cairo, Egypt)
Patricia Finneran, Story Matters (New York, NY)
Gary Ginstling, Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra (Indianapolis, IN)
Daniel Gorman, Shubbak Festival (London, United Kingdom)
Brent Hasty, MINDPOP (Austin, TX)
Jeffreen Hayes, Rebuild Foundation (Chicago, IL)
Cristy Johnston Limon, Destiny Arts Center (Oakland, CA)
Anne Katz, Arts Wisconsin (Madison, WI)
Geoffrey Kershner, Endstation Theatre Company (Lynchburg, VA)
Karen Kienzle, Palo Alto Art Center (Palo Alto, CA)
Scott Kratz, 11th Street Bridge Park (Washington, DC)
Lex Leifheit, SOMArts (San Francisco, CA)
Sheila Lewandowski, Chocolate Factory Theater (Long Island City, NY)
Frank Little, City of Edinburgh Council (Edinburgh, Scotland)
María Claudia López, Ministry of Culture (Bogotá, Colombia)
Karen Mack, LA Commons, A Project of Community Partners (Los Angeles, CA)
Jeff McCarter, Free Spirit Media (Chicago, IL)
Lynne McCormack, City of Providence, Department of Art, Culture + Tourism (Providence, RI)
Hope McMath, Cummer Museum of Art & Gardens (Jacksonville, FL)
Tanner Methvin, Africa Centre (Cape Town, South Africa)
Andreas Mitisek, Long Beach Opera (Long Beach, CA) and Chicago Opera Theater (Chicago, IL)
Donna Neuwirth, Wormfarm Institute (Reedsburg, WI)
Adam Philipson, Count Basie Theatre (Red Bank, NJ)
Kelly Pollock, Center of Creative Arts (St. Louis, MO)
Michael Rohd, Sojourn Theatre and Center for Performance and Civic Practice (Evanston, IL)
Abe Rybeck, The Theater Offensive: OUT in Your Neighborhood (Boston, MA)
Sue Schardt, Association of Independents in Radio (Boston, MA)
Roger Schmidt, Sitka Fine Arts Camp (Sitka, AK)
Michael Seiwerath, Capitol Hill Housing Foundation (Seattle, WA)
Michael Shanklin, Kidspace Children’s Museum (Pasadena, CA)
Scott Showalter, Oregon Symphony (Portland, OR)
Connie Spreen, Experimental Station (Chicago, IL)
Tracy Straus, Celebrate the Beat (Denver, CO)
Alicia Sutton, Free Arts for Abused Children of Arizona (Phoenix, AZ)
Clyde Valentín, SMU Meadow Arts + Urbanism Initiative (Dallas, TX)
Carol Varney, Bay Area Video Coalition (San Francisco, CA)
Gerd Wuestemann, Acadiana Center for the Arts (Lafayette, LA)
Learn more about The Chief Executive Program: Community and Culture »
Development of The Chief Executive Program was made possible by the support of The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the Fidelity Foundation and The Kresge Foundation.
