Staff & Board of Directors

Want to contact us? All staff e-mail addresses are formatted as follows: firstname.lastname@creativemoco.com

Core Staff

AHCMC's highly experienced and effective core staff serve a variety of constituents including organizations, individuals, educators and the general public. Core staff lead the key functional areas for AHCMC which includes: grants, communications, program services, advocacy, policy development, strategic planning and administration. 

Suzan E. Jenkins, Chief Executive Officer

 Recognized as one of the Top CEOs You Need To Know in 2009 by The Gazette of Politics and Business, featured in Women Business Leaders of Maryland 2010, recipient of the Friend of Glen Echo Park Award in 2011 and winner of the 2012 Washingtonian Green Giant Award, Suzan Jenkins is a visionary CEO with a knack for leading cultural initiatives. She has over 20 years extensive experience spearheading organizational and programmatic development in the non-profit arts and culture sector from world renown organizations such as the Rhythm and Blues Foundation, the Smithsonian Institution and the Recording Industry Association of America to name but a few. In May 2012 she will be awarded an Honorary Degree for Associate of Arts in Public Service from Montgomery College, Maryland and in February 2013 she was awarded the Jazz Service Award by the Mid-Atlantic Jazz Festival.

 

 

Jenkins is a strategic thinker and team builder who develops innovative projects that respond to and cultivate communities.  It is in that light that Jenkins co-founded the Nonprofit Energy Alliance. Since its inception in May 2010, the Non-Profit Energy Alliance is now comprised of 64 leading-edge nonprofits that will collectively save an estimated $536,000 compared to standard energy service, while supporting clean sources of energy that are essential to protecting our environment and building a new economy. The wind power purchased through this alliance offsets about 40 million pounds of CO2, which is equivalent to removing 3,500 cars off the roads. Participating nonprofits used their collective purchasing power to save on a fixed expense, freeing up resources for essential services while also implementing environmentally sustainable business practices. Her career has been dedicated to encouraging creativity and scholarly excellence in arts and cultural organizations; she has served as Executive in Residence in the College of Music at Loyola University, New Orleans, as an adjunct professor at American University and is currently an adjunct professor in the Department of Visual and Performing Arts, Arts Management Program, at George Mason University.

Suzan Jenkins’ work has supported freedom of expression and creativity though her efforts not only in the US, but internationally. She has served as a marketing consultant to the Fes Festival of World Sacred Music in the Imperial City of Fes, Morocco and worked with artists interested in exploring cultural exchange, such as bringing Mardi Gras Indians in New Orleans, Louisiana, to Essaouira, Morocco to participate in the Gnaoua Festival, and in bringing rhythm and blues musicians to Madrid, Spain in the 1990s and jazz students to the Hague and Panama.

She has produced several recordings and is the Conceptual Producer of the Peabody Award winning series Let the Good Times Roll, produced for Public Radio International. She is a board member of the Cultural Data Project; the Cultural Alliance of Greater Washington and Committee for Montgomery and serves on the Silver Spring, MD Arts and Entertainment Advisory Committee and is Co-Chair or the Women of Color in the Arts Mentoring Committee. Ms. Jenkins earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology and an M.B.A. from the University of Maryland University College.

 

Shellie Williams, Deputy Director
 

 Shellie Williams has been active in the cultural field for over 25 years specializing in marketing, programming and policy development that helps cultural institutions make meaningful connections to broad and diverse audiences. During her career, Shellie has served in curatorial and public program roles at art museums in South Carolina, Florida and Michigan. In 1998, she joined the staff of LORD Cultural Resources Planning & Management, Inc., an international museum management and planning firm headquartered in Toronto. Over the next six years, Shellie conducted 43 planning projects across the United States for public and university museums, municipalities, performing art centers, science centers and botanical gardens. For LORD, Shellie specialized in community needs assessment and its integration with policy, programming, marketing, and facility planning. In 2000, Shellie relocated LORD's East Coast headquarters to Washington, DC and served as the Director of the East Coast office until 2004.

In 2005, Shellie joined the Arts and Humanities Council of Montgomery County (AHCMC) where she created a new staff position as Director of Marketing. In 2010, Shellie was named Deputy Director of AHCMC. Since joining AHCMC, Shellie had developed a dynamic suite of marketing services that help the arts and humanities community connect with audiences. These services include an active schedule of cooperative marketing opportunities, digital and print outreach campaigns, social media strategies, the development of a new online cultural calendar --DOandGO.org--and a strong capacity-building program that strengthens nonprofits. In 2009, Shellie oversaw the development of a multimedia website—MontgomeryTraditions.com—which features members of the County's folk and traditional artists. She has raised $1 Million dollars in grants for arts education and operations

Joe Frandoni, Digital Communications Manager

 Joe Frandoni has worked in arts management and advocacy for the past five years; advocating for expanded cross-cultural dialogue, increased visibility for artists, and innovative business solutions for arts organizations. He recently finished his Masters in Arts Management at Carnegie Mellon University as well as his Graduate Degree in Innovation and Organization of Culture and the Arts at the University of Bologna in Bologna Italy.  Joe has always strived to help arts organizations expand their web presence and use of technology in marketing and communications. A native of ohio, he is very excited to work with all of the arts organizations that the AHCMC serves and become involved with the incredible cultural initiatives that are taking place in Montgomery County. 

 

Robert Hanson, Grants Program Officer

 Robert Hanson is an active performer, teacher and arts administrator. Before becoming the Grants Program Officer for AHCMC, Robert worked at the National Endowment for the Arts in the Performing Arts Division, and administered the Boston GuitarFest.  He recently received a Masters of Music from the New England Conservatory under the tutelage of Maestro Eliot Fisk.  Robert also attended the Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University and the Duke Ellington School for the Arts. A longtime Washingtonian, Robert has been fortunate to be a participant, both on and off stage, at many local arts organizations.

 

 

 

Thomas Canavan, Gallery Assistant
 

 Thomas Canavan joins AHCMC as the Betty Mae Kramer Gallery Assistant. Thomas will be working alongside curators Michele Cohen and Crystal Polis to install exhibitions in the Betty Mae Kramer Gallery.  Thomas Canavan was born in Washington DC and is currently living in Silver Spring, MD. He received a BA in Studio Arts from University of Maryland in 2006 and worked for several years in The Art Gallery, serving in various roles throughout his time there. Thomas then received an MS in Arts Administration from Boston University in 2008. He most recently had a two man show, Paint Canvas Walls People at the now Brooklyn-based Lamont Bishop Gallery in 2011. His group shows include, The Illmatic Show, Lamont Bishop Gallery, Washington DC (2010), The Document, Lamont Bishop Gallery, Washington DC, Sub-Basement Studios, Baltimore, MD, and DC Arts Center, Washington DC (2009, 2007, 2006). In addition to his love for artwork, Thomas' second passion lies in education. As the cluster coordinator of DC Public Schools' Afterschool Program for the West End's Francis Stevens Education Campus and Bancroft Elementary in Mt. Pleasant, Mr. Canavan supports over 250 students working to improve their educational experience beyond the traditional school day. Thomas has also been recently selected to exhibit at the 2012 (e)merge Art Fair.

 

Emily Kelly, Marketing Associate

 

Emily Kelly is excited to join the AHCMC staff as our new Marketing Associate. Emily is a May 2013 graduate of Howard University, where she recieved a B.A. in Communication and Culture with a minor in Theatre Arts Administration. 

 

Consultants

AHCMC contracts with consultants who are recognized specialists in their fields to manage discreet programs and provide key services. With the assistance of our consulting staff, AHCMC maintains an active public art program, a vibrant arts education program and is undertaking the development of a web-based multimedia exhibition on the folk and traditional arts of Montgomery County.

 

Michele Cohen, Ph. D., Public Arts Trust/Betty Mae Kramer Gallery and Music Room
 

 Principal of Michele Cohen Art, Dr. Cohen has over 25 years experience as an administrator, writer, curator, and professor in the field of public art. From 1989-2009, she served as the founding Director of New York City’s Public Art for Public Schools program, managing a collection inventory, extensive conservation program and new acquisitions. Prior to her tenure with the Public Art for Public Schools program, she directed the sculpture inventory for the Art Commission of the City of New York. Most recently an Assistant Professor of Arts Administration and Director of the Trustman Art Gallery at Simmons College, she curated group and solo exhibitions and taught classes on arts administration and public art. Through collection management, education, and advocacy, she will assist the Arts and Humanities Council to revitalize its public art program.

 

Dr. Cohen holds a B.A. in Art History and English Literature from the State University of New York at Buffalo and a Ph.D. in Art History from the Graduate Center of the City University of New York.

 

Interns

Megan Wyble - Public Art Intern

Megan Wyble joins AHCMC as a public art and communications intern. She is a first year student in the Montgomery Scholars program at Montgomery College. She is an art major and is also studying world history, world music, philosophy, and literature. Before entering college, Megan took advanced placement art classes throughout high school and was selected to receive the Virginia Patterson Moser Art Scholarship at the end of her senior year. She plans on transferring to the Savannah College of Art and Design in 2014 to study Motion Media Design. She is excited to work with AHCMC and to interact with such a diverse and talented arts and humanities community.

  

 

Interns provide invaluable support for the many programs presented by AHCMC.

 

Board of Directors

The Board of Directors of the Arts and Humanities Council of Montgomery County includes artists, humanities scholars, business leaders, civic activists, arts administrators, artists, and non-profit executives with a diverse mix of ethnic, economic, geographic, and employment backgrounds. The board is dedicated to the mission of the Arts and Humanities Council and welcomes interested individuals to contact them with questions about the Arts and Humanities Council. For more information, please call us at 301-565-3805.

 

Executive Committee

 

Erica A. Leatham, Esq.
Board Chair
Ballard Spahr LLP

 

Ron Wolfsheimer
Treasurer; Vice Chair
Calvert Group, Ltd.

 

Joan Krejci Griggs
Secretary; Chair, Grants Committee
President, Griggs Associates

 

Kim Baich
Chair, Development Committee
COO, Good360

 

Mara Mayor, Ph.D.
Chair, Audit Committee
Education Consultant
 

Eric Siegel
Chair, Advocacy Committee
Executive Vice President/Legal Counsel/LEED, AP
Cohen Companies

 

Roberta F. Shulman (Bobbi)
Chair, Governance Committee
Artist
Shulman Associates, LLC

Board Members

Sterling Crockett
Advocacy Committee
CEO, Chesapeake Bay Roasting Company
 

Phil Peng
Grants and Audit Committee
Agency Fiscal Officer, Office of Chief Technology Officer
District of Columbia Government