Karen Corburn is an experienced Human Resources Leader who understands the challenges of growing an organization through maximizing the potential of its people. Currently, she provides consulting services and solutions in the areas of organizational change, leadership development and executive coaching utilizing best practices and innovative techniques. After more than twenty years experience with corporations large and small such as The Coca-Cola Company, iXL, Inc., Digital Equipment Corporation, McKesson, Deloitte she has her own consulting practice. Her first exposure to a not for profit organization was as a leadership consultant to the Board of Directors of Earth University in Costa Rica. With her move to the bay area just four years ago, Karen decided to expand her engagements in the not for profit area and joined The Taproot Foundation as an Account Director. She has been certified as a Master Coach by the Coaching Institute and holds additional professional credentials from Birkman International, The Center for Creative Leadership, and Development Dimensions, Intl.

Dress

dress (a.k.a. dave wedding dress) has been an activist for peace and justice for nearly 30 years, working with non-hierarchical groups on direct action projects to stop war and injustice, and bring more equality and balance to the lives of poor and oppressed peoples. In 1982, dress joined Livermore Action Group, where he learned about using non-violent resistance and organizing. He has worked with numerous peace and justice groups, such as Food Not Bombs, Abalone Alliance, Rocky Flats Truth Force, Earth First!  His personal action for over 25 years has been to wear dresses with no affectation, embracing the feminine within publicly.  He enjoys playing saxophone and clarinet as part of the Funky Nixons, a political satire rock-and-roll band. He’s also a member of the Brass Liberation Orchestra, SF’s infamous progressive marching band. He enjoys jam sessions wherever and whenever possible, especially around a campfire.  dress is an active member in Reclaiming, an earth-based spiritual activist group for which he has helped organize numerous events, including the Spiral Dance and Witchlets in the Woods.

Laura Elaine Ellis

Laura Elaine Ellis is a dancer, choreographer and producer. Presently, she is the Executive Director of the Young Saints Scholarship Foundation and the Executive Director of the African and African American Performing Arts Coalition (AAAPAC) – a San Francisco based, non-profit organization, founded in 1995 by a collective of artists looking to create better performance opportunities for and produce shows that reflect the aesthetic and cultural representation of Africans and African Americans. As AAAPAC’s executive director, Laura Elaine Ellis has co-produced successful events such as the Labor of Love Dance Series, The Quilt Project: Pieces of Me, and currently the Black Choreographers Festival: Here & Now. The Black Choreographers Festival: Here & Now is a community event of dance concerts, symposia, mentoring programs and workshops celebrating the legacy and artistry of African and African American choreographers.Funding awards for AAAPAC projects include: The Creative Work Fund, The Irvine Foundation, San Francisco Arts Commission, The San Francisco Foundation, the Walter & Elise Haas Fund and the Zellerbach Family Foundation.

Anne Ho

Anne Ho is the Managing Attorney at CREATE Legal, a law firm serving individuals and organizations in the arts and entertainment industries. Anne is also a professional commercial actor and model, appearing in theater, film, television, industrials, and print.  She previously worked as a Law Fellow at California Lawyers for the Arts on its Legal Referral Services team.

Anne has significant experience in the areas of research, analytics, and consulting with concentrations in the fields of international economic law, international development, and corporate governance. Past employment include stints at the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and EMpower: The Emerging Markets Foundation. Prior to obtaining her graduate degrees, Anne worked for Blue Shield of California where she advised employer group clients on managed care plan design and utilization.

Anne received her B.A. from Stanford University and her J.D. and M.B.A. from University of San Francisco. She is currently pursuing her M.L.A. from Stanford University. 

Cole Krawitz

Cole Krawitz is a writer and a poet whose work has appeared in such publications as Tidal Basin Review, Connotation Press, Zeek, OCHO,Newsday and The Forward. A Lambda Fellow, he received an MFA in Creative Writing from Lesley University. He has been a Lecturer in June Jordan’s Poetry for the People Program at University of California, Berkeley and the MA in English Program at Holy Names University. He has also been a contributing host on “Beyond the Pale: A Progressive Jewish Radio Hour” on WBAI in New York, and was the founder of jvoices.com. Cole also has many years of experience in the non-profit sector, including in communications and event production and promotion. He was recently commissioned by the Queer Cultural Center through the Creating Queer Communities Grant to produce an event for the 2011 National Queer Arts Festival. Cole currently works at The San Francisco Foundation as the Public Affairs and Communications Online Specialist, and as an independent communications consultant. He lives in Oakland, CA.

Jessica Robinson Love

Jessica Robinson Love has served CounterPULSE for ten years. During that time, she has ushered CounterPULSE through a merger and relocation, expanding the organization’s budget ten-fold during her tenure as director. She designed and implemented CounterPULSE’s successful Artist in Residence program, and has curated dozens of performances and workshops. She has also served as guest curator for organizations such as Yerba Buena Center for the Arts and the San Francisco International Arts Festival. Jessica is a writer, performer and political activist and her dance writing has been published in In Dance and on CriticalDance.com. She has worked in administration, production, and publicity for artists and arts organizations including Jess Curtis, Keith Hennessy / Circo Zero, Dance Through Time, and the Erika Shuch Performance (ESP) Project. Jessica served as adjunct faculty member at the New College of California where she has designed and implemented courses including “Activist Arts Synthesis”, “Arts Administration and Cultural Organizing” and “20th Century US History through the Arts.” During her tenure on the Isadora Duncan Dance Awards Committee she was responsible for curating and co-producing the annual Bay Area Dance Awards. She has served on the steering committee for San Francisco Arts Forum, the Theatre Bay Area Theatre Services Committee, the Dance/USA Emerging Leader Task Force, and the Executive Committee of the Board of Directors of Alternate ROOTS, a service and granting organization for community-based artists in the Southeastern United States. She has been the recipient of awards and scholarships from Dance/USA and the Bill T. Shannon Leadership Institute, and was the inaugural recipient of the Bay Area Dancers’ Choice Award for her service to the dance community.

Seth Meisler 

Seth Meisler is an Architect / Senior Associate with the San Francisco office of Perkins+Will. Over the course of his 30 years of experience, Seth has worked on a broad range of projects locally and around the world for clients such as Stanford University, Genentech and the University of Washington. Seth recently led the laboratory planning for the Health Sciences Campus at the new Princess Nora Bint Abdulrahman University for Women in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Seth’s passion for the Arts extends to his professional practice through his leadership of Perkins+Will’s local pro bono design work for the new Uptown Tenderloin Museum and SOMArts

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 Kate Patterson received her BA in Art History from Smith College in 2000. Prior to joining the Arts Commission where she overseespublic relations and community outreach, Kate was Manager of Public Relations & Marketing at the Contemporary Jewish Museum in San Francisco. From 2003 to 2005, she was the Marketing & Sales Manager at Acoustiguide Inc., a leading interpretive audio and multimedia tour company. She has also worked at the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, South Street Seaport Museum, the Vorpal Gallery and the San Francisco Arts Commission Gallery.

Antoaneta Petkova, Ph.D

Board Treasurer

Antoaneta Petkova is an Associate Professor of Management in the College of Business at San Francisco State University, where she teaches MBA andundergraduate classes in strategic management. Her research focuses on strategies that young entrepreneurial organizations use to solicit resources and support from critical stakeholders.

 

Judith Zissman

Judith Zissman is the founder and principal of Apicule, a product strategy consultancy. She works with startups and established companies in a variety of industries to develop and bring new products to market. She particularly enjoys projects with a focus on sustainable design, innovation and community development. Judith also works as a visual artist, and enjoys cooking, reading, and time with her mischievous dog, Lyle.

Advisory Committee Members

Marketing & Communications Committee

• Neelu Bhuman: Independent Designer at designofneelu.com
• Kathy Budas: Director of Marketing and Communications at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
• Kathy Jaller: Marketing/Web/Designer at the Contemporary Jewish Museum
• Kara Whitting: Senior Marketing Manager at the San Francisco Symphony
• Evren Odcikin: Publicist at KQED and Independent Theater Director

Catherine Moller Spaulding is City Performance Deputy Director at the City and County of San Francisco Controller’s Office.   Her role is to help the City improve outcomes and efficiencies in public health, nonprofit service delivery, children and youth programs, and human services.  She is responsible for the planning and execution of analytical and technical assistance projects.  She presents findings and recommendations to the public, oversight bodies, and elected officials, as well as serves on citywide advisory committees and task forces.