FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 21, 2017
Contact: Johanna Tschebull
202.833.1717
Washington, DC – July 21, 2017 – Dance/USA, the national service organization for professional dance, is pleased to announce its 2017-2018 Board of Trustees. For a complete list of the 2017-2018 Dance/USA Board of Trustees and their biographies, read more here.
Dance/USA’s new Chair of the Board of Trustees is Michelle Ramos (project director, Vera Institute of Justice, New Orleans, LA). Arthur Espinoza (executive director, DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities, Washington, DC) is the new Vice Chair, Robert Dorf (consultant, New York, NY) is the new Treasurer, and Nancy Kadel (orthopedic surgeon, Bend, OR) is the new Secretary.
The Board of Trustees recently nominated six new members to serve a three-year term: Kathy Brown (executive director, New York City Ballet, New York, NY), Pam Green (founder and president, PMG Arts Management, Durham, NC), Genie Guerard (manuscripts librarian, UCLA Library Special Collections; Chair, Dance Heritage Coalition Executive Board of Trustees, Los Angeles, CA), Jerron Herman (development director/dancer, Heidi Latsky Dance, New York, NY), Iquail Shaheed (founder and executive artistic director, DANCE IQUAIL!, Philadelphia, PA), and Rosy Simas (director, Rosy Simas Danse, Minneapolis, MN).
Dance/USA’s membership elected five new Council Chairs for a one-year term: Greg Cameron (executive director, the Joffrey Ballet, Chicago, IL), Jim Leija (director of education and community engagement, UMS, Ann Arbor, MI), Victoria Morgan (artistic director, Cincinnati Ballet, Cincinnati, OH), Sue Porter (executive director, BalletMet, Columbus, OH), and Abdo Sayegh Rodriguez (managing director, TU Dance, Saint Paul, MN).
“The new Trustees are a wonderful group of leaders from across the United States” commented Dance/USA Executive Director Amy Fitterer. “The Board of Trustees is committed to governing Dance/USA in a way that ensures the organization will continue to evolve and better drive our core values of equity, inclusion and diversity. We are excited that the new voices on the Board will help our organization move forward in informed and dynamic ways.”
The following Trustees and Council Chairs rotated off the Board of Trustees this summer: Mark Baird (program director, the LEAP Program, New York, NY and San Francisco, CA), Ian Garrett (co-founder and director, the Center for Sustainable Practice in the Arts, Toronto, Canada), Walter Jaffe (co-founder, White Bird, Portland, OR), Dorothy Gunther Pugh (chief executive officer and founding artistic director, Ballet Memphis, Memphis, TN), Pam Robinson (chief financial officer, Alvin Ailey Dance Theater, New York, NY), Aparna Ramaswamy (co-artistic director, Ragamala Dance, Minneapolis, MN), Andrea Clark Smith (senior associate counsel and vice president of employment and labor group, UPMC, Pittsburgh, PA), and Matt Wells (chief operating officer, Diavolo|Architecture in Motion, Los Angeles, CA).
“We are grateful for the leadership and support these individuals provided over their tenure and we thank them for their outstanding service to the field of professional dance,” added Fitterer.
About Dance/USA
We believe that dance is essential to a healthy society, demonstrating the infinite possibilities for human expression and potential, and facilitating communication within and across cultures. We are committed to honoring, nurturing and advancing dance through the lens of diversity, inclusion and equal opportunity in all aspects of our programming, services and organization.
Dance/USA is the national service organization for the professional dance field. Established in 1982, Dance/USA sustains and advances professional dance by addressing the needs, concerns, and interests of artists, administrators, and organizations. By providing national leadership and services, Dance/USA enhances the infrastructure for dance creation and distribution, education, and dissemination of information. Learn more about Dance/USA by visiting our website, danceusa.org.
