Creative Ecosystems Conference
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Speakers 
Cofounder, Love and Magic Company
Pamela Abalu, co-founder of The Love and Magic Company, pioneers human-centered design practices that infuse consciousness, energy flow, and inclusivity into global workplace transformations.A Crain’s 40 Under 40 honoree, Pamela Abalu is inventing the future of workplace design...
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Executive Director, The Arts Council of Wilmington/New Hanover County
Rhonda Bellamy has served as executive director of the Arts Council of Wilmington/New Hanover County since launching the organization in July 2012. She has served on a variety of arts-related boards, including the Black Arts Alliance, Inc. and the North Carolina Black Film Festival...
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Economic Development & Tourism, City of Lynchburg
Anna Bentson is the Assistant Director of Economic Development & Tourism for the City of Lynchburg. In her role, Anna leads tourism and economic development marketing, entrepreneurship and business development for the City of Lynchburg and its Economic Development Authority. Anna...
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Director of Programs and Resources, Association of Performing Arts Professionals
Krista R. Bradley joined the Association of Performing Arts Professionals (APAP) as the Director of Programs and Resources in July 2017. In this capacity she develops and implements APAP's year-round and conference-related professional development programs, grantmaking, services...
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Founder/ Executive Director, Urban Artistry Inc.
Junious “House” Brickhouse is an internationally established educator, choreographer and cultural preservationist with over 30 years of experience in Urban Dance Culture. Born in Virginia Beach, VA, his dance training began at family gatherings dancing the funk styles of the era...
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Assistant Professor of Hip-Hop and the Global South, University of Virginia
A.D. Carson is an award-winning performance artist and educator who writes rap songs, poems, stories, and essays. He was born in Decatur, Illinois and received a Ph.D. in Rhetorics, Communication, and Information Design at Clemson University. Dr. Carson is a 2016 recipient of the...
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Founder, The Cheats Movement
Marc Cheatham is a freelance writer and photographer. In 2011, he launched The Cheats Movement Blog, a platform that celebrates the Richmond region as a hub for music, art, culture, and diversity. The Cheats Movement Blog and collection of podcasts have been voted one of the best...
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Executive Director, Maryland Citizens for the Arts
Over the past 12 years, Nicholas Cohen has been a strong advocate for the arts in Maryland as a musician, educator, and administrator. Currently, Mr. Cohen is the Executive Director of Maryland Citizens for the Arts (MCA). In this role, he oversees the statewide strategy, implementation...
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Executive Director, Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation
Executive Director, Carnegie Hall, Inc.
Sara M. Crickenberger joined Carnegie Hall as Executive Director in January 2016. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism from Marshall University, her Master of Arts degree in Corporate and Organizational Communication from West Virginia University, and her Master of...
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Family Arts Museum, National Museum of Women in the Arts
Melani N. Douglass, NMWA’s Director of Public Programs, heads the groundbreaking Women, Arts and Social Change (WASC) initiative. At NMWA, Melani is cultivating a network of artists, curators, collectors, journalists, change agents and entrepreneurs who understand the power of art...
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Director of Programs, Design Trust for Public Space
Rosamond Fletcher, Assoc. AIA, is Director of Programs at the Design Trust for Public Space, a nonprofit organization that unlocks the potential of New York City’s shared spaces. She leads the strategic development, implementation, and assessment of Design Trust’s programs. Rosamond...
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Director, Berea College
Beth Flowers has decades of e-level experience with non-profits, governmental agencies, broadcast media, and the arts. She is a visionary thinker and a talented communicator. Beth has created messaging for victorious political candidates and issues, inspired citizen participation...
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Founder, ARThouse and Love Front Porch
Vanessa German is a visual and performance artist based in the Pittsburgh neighborhood of Homewood. As a citizen artist, German explores the power of art and love as a transformative force in the dynamic cultural ecosystem of communities and neighborhoods. She is the founder of Love...
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Producer, Higher Ground
Robert Gipe won the 2015 Weatherford Award for outstanding Appalachian novel for his first novel Trampoline. His second novel is Weedeater (2018). Both novels were published by Ohio University Press. From 1997 to 2018, Gipe directed the Southeast Kentucky Community & Technical College...
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Art Space Technical Assistance Program Coordinator, Baltimore Arts Realty Corporation (BARCO)
Marian April Glebes brings a multifaceted practice to her role as BARCO’s Arts Space Technical Assistance Program Coordinator. As an emerging artist, Glebes became the inaugural Artist-In-Residence at the Baltimore Museum of Art’s Patricia and Mark Joseph Centre for Education...
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Executive Director, The Bridge Progressive Arts Initiative / Charlottesville Mural Project
Alan is the director of The Bridge Progressive Arts Initiative and The Charlottesville Mural Project. He spends his nine-to-five facilitating, devising and implementing inventive ways use art as a catalyst for social change and meaningful connection. With a background in social work...
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Director, North Carolina Folk Festival
Amy Grossmann is the Interim President & CEO of ArtsGreensboro, the leading arts funding organization in Guilford County that financially supports more than 50 arts organizations and projects each year, connects the public to arts and entertainment, and financially supports the area...
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Director Americas, Art Basel
Noah Horowitz has served as Director Americas for Art Basel since 2015. Prior to this, he held a four-year tenure as Executive Director of The Armory Show in New York, after directing the first ever online-only fair, VIP Art Fair in 2009. Noah holds a Ph.D. in art history from the...
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Executive Director, Greater Baltimore Cultural Alliance
Leading the Greater Baltimore Cultural Alliance (GBCA), Jeannie Howe is responsible for convening the region's cultural community by connecting artists and organizations to one another and to vital resources, as well as advocating for the strategic needs of the sector and promoting...
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Community Engagement Officer, Monticello
Gayle Jessup White became Monticello’s first community engagement officer in 2016. She is not only a direct Jefferson descendant, but is related to two well-documented families enslaved at Monticello - the Hemingses and the Hubbards.A former award- winning TV reporter, Jessup White...
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Chief of Economic Development, City of Tulsa
Kian Kamas serves as Chief of Economic Development for Mayor G.T. Bynum and the City of Tulsa. In this role she is responsible for directly managing a team of ten staff who focus on managing and developing tools and programs crucial to successful economic development, and supporting...
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Director, Virginia Folklife, Virginia Humanities
Jon Lohman is the Virginia State Folklorist and director of the Virginia Folklife Program. Jon earned a Ph.D. degree in Folklore and Folklife from the University of Pennsylvania. Since coming to Virginia Humanities in 2001, Lohman has been actively showcasing Virginia’s rich cultural...
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Executive Director, Tamarack Foundation
Renée Margocee has served as the Executive Director of the Tamarack Foundation for the Arts since March 2017. Renée received her B.A. in English Literature from Marshall University and studied ceramics at West Virginia University. With a background in liberal arts and arts administration...
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State & Regional Specialist, National Endowment for the Arts
Andi Mathis is the State & Regional Partnerships Specialist at the National Endowment for the Arts. Her primary work involves advancing the NEA’s relationship with its state and regional arts agency partners through policy development and management of NEA’s investment in their...
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Director of Advanced Social Systems, Burning Man
Michael Mikel is both an historian and a futurist with an interest in technology and social communities. He serves Burning Man as Director of Advanced Social Systems and Ambassador. Michael was instrumental in bringing Burning Man to the Black Rock Desert of Nevada, and is responsible...
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Director of Art Education, Mural Arts Philadelphia
Lisa Murch, the Director of the Education Program at Mural Arts Philadelphia, brings 18 years of experience to her role. Murch moved to Philadelphia to get her MFA at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and painted her first mural in 2001. She has since acted as a Lead Teaching...
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Director, Folk & Traditional Arts, National Endowment for the Arts
Cliff Murphy has served as the Director of Folk & Traditional Arts at the National Endowment for the Arts since 2015. He is the past Director of Maryland Traditions, the Folklife program of the Maryland State Arts Council, where he served from 2008-2015. Cliff has co-produced radio...
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Executive Director, NCAPER
Prior to becoming Executive Director of the National Coalition for Arts? Preparedness & Emergency Response and the Performing Arts Coordinator for the Performing Arts Readiness Project in 2017, Jan Newcomb had a career in arts management and education that spanned 30+ years. Jan directed...
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Director, Presenting & Multidisciplinary Works, Artist Communities, International Activities, National Endowment for the Arts
Michael Orlove has been Director of Artists Communities, Presenting and Multidisciplinary Works and International Activities for the National Endowment for the Arts since 2012. Previously, Orlove spent 19 years as senior program director for the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs...
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Professor, Virginia Union University
Ricky Parker is a social entrepreneur that believes in using art as a means to effect social change. Currently, he serves as the Creative Director of Dream For Purpose, a creative agency that focuses on providing marketing solutions and brand management services to clients within...
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Vice President of Strategic Initiatives, Maryland Institute College of Art
Sheri Parks, Ph.D. is Vice President of Strategic Initiatives at Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) in Baltimore. Previously, she was Associate Dean for Research, Interdisciplinary Scholarship and Programming and Director of the Center for Synergy at the University of Maryland...
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Director of the Urban Lab, LBJ School of Public Affairs at The University of Texas at Austin
Steven Pedigo is an expert in economic and urban development, city strategy and management, and placemaking. Steven has advised and collaborated with more than 50 cities, universities, developers, nonprofits, and Fortune 500 companies across the globe to build more creative, innovative...
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Richmond Arts Supporter
Pam and Bill both fell in love with the arts at an early age. Today they are avid collectors and actively support emerging artists, arts organizations, and a host of educational opportunities offered through the arts. Pam is a former board member of Richmond’s Neighborhood School...
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Richmond Arts Supporter
Pam and Bill both fell in love with the arts at an early age. Today they are avid collectors and actively support emerging artists, arts organizations, and a host of educational opportunities offered through the arts. Pam is a former board member of Richmond’s Neighborhood School...
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Director, Artist Protection Fund
Alison Russo, Senior Director of the Artist Protection Fund (APF), joined IIE in September 2015 having most recently curated and managed the Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Center Programs and arts portfolio. Alison has spent the last years designing and developing the APF program—which...
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President, Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro, Inc.
H. Walker Sanders is president of The Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro (CFGG). Its mission is to inspire giving, maximize opportunities and strengthen communities for present and future generations. CFGG manages more than $220 million in assets through 650 component funds...
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Writer
Raised in New York City, Sarah Sargent received her BA from Wellesley College and her MA from Columbia University (both in Art History). She worked in the art world in New York at Hirschl & Adler Galleries, the Robert Miller Gallery, for the industrial designer Eva Zeisel and antiquarian...
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Producing Artistic Director, Greenbrier Valley Theatre
Cathey Sawyer is Producing Artistic Director of the Greenbrier Valley Theatre in Lewisburg, WV, the State Professional Theatre. She is a recipient of the Governor’s Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Arts, the Governor’s Award for Artistic Excellence, the Order of Arts & Historical...
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executive director and co-founder, Big Car Collaborative
Jim Walker is co-founder of the Indianapolis-based arts organization, Big Car Collaborative. He serves as lead artist on Spark, Big Car’s program activating public spaces. He co-leads work on one block where Big Car owns 22 properties — including affordable artist homes and a...
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Managing Director, AMS Planning & Research Corp.
Since its founding in 1988, AMS has gained particular recognition for its work on important cultural facilities planning projects, having had participated in the successful development of $9 billion in capital facilities for the arts, ranging from small projects to those costing hundreds...
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Director, Virginia Tech Foundation Inc doing business as Reynolds Homestead
Julie Walters-Steele is honored to serve as the Director of Reynolds Homestead, a Commonwealth Campus Center at Virginia Tech, where she manages a Community Enrichment Center and the historic Rock Spring Plantation. During the past seven years, Julie has initiated a growth in programs...
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Musician, Chesapeake Sheiks
Pioneering blue harmonica players and National Endowment for the Arts National Heritage Fellow.
Executive Editor & Publisher, Virginia Quarterly Review
Allison Wright is the executive editor and publisher of the Virginia Quarterly Review. Her writing has appeared in the Atlantic, the Guardian, CNN, VQR, Popular Mechanics, and elsewhere. She teaches media ethics and journalism in the master's program at NYU and at the University of...
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Director of Equity and Inclusion, Greater Baltimore Cultural Alliance
The Baltimore arts community was the platform that nurtured Kibibi Ajanku’s passion for art, and started an artistic journey that began with the study of western forms of movement and training in the visual arts, and continued into an exploration, execution, and deep passion for...
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Executive Director and Chief Curator, Second Street Gallery
Executive Director and Chief Curator of Charlottesville, VA-based Second Street Gallery (a 501(c)3 art space), Kristen Chiacchia has been collaborating with high profile American and international art collectors for nearly 20 years. Prior to joining Second Street Gallery, Chiacchia...
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Owner/Director, Les Yeux du Monde
After receiving her Ph.D. in Art History, Lyn Bolen Warren opened the gallery Les Yeux du Monde (the eyes of the world) in 1995 in her mountaintop home. After years in downtown Charlottesville, the gallery returned in 2009 to its original location, this time in a W.G. Clark designed...
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