Placements

A distinguished leader in music and cultural advocacy, Johnson brings a remarkable breadth of experience as a civic leader, professional musician, and arts innovator to New Orleans’ most cherished cultural institution. With roots connecting him to New Orleans, Johnson is set to build on the Foundation’s legacy preserving and celebrating Louisiana’s vibrant cultural heritage while expanding access to the arts and empowering the local community.

Mira is a seasoned executive leader with over 25 years of experience providing healthcare and behavioral health management oversight
in medical and public health environments. In this newly created position, she will facilitate the work of behavioral health service providers and actively pursue new program opportunities to ensure increased equity and access to services in the community.

Alyssa comes to Abode Services from CORA – Community Against Relationship Abuse, where she served as Development Director managing all fundraising and communications staff and was responsible for raising over $8M annually. She has a broad array of experience in fundraising, politics, and communications.

After 19 years of dedicated service, Gregory Kepferle, the current CEO, will retire at the beginning of January 2025. Bishop Oscar Cantú has officially appointed Don Taylor as the new Chief Executive Officer of Catholic Charities, effective December 2, 2024.

Currently serving as Executive Director of the Barry Art Museum at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia, Charlotte is an accomplished administrator and visual artist, whose medium is glass. During her tenure as Glass Studio Manager and Programming Director at the Chrysler Museum of Art in Norfolk, she pioneered the field of performance glass. An avid educator, Potter Kasic founded the Assistantship Program at the Chrysler and taught glass and new media courses at universities and summer programs such as Penland School of Crafts and Oxbow School of Art.

Jen Wylegala is a seasoned development and communications leader and strategist. Most recently, Wylegala was the Chief Philanthropy and Communications Officer at the Collaborative for Gender + Reproductive Equity and the Gender Equity Action Fund, where she built and directed both national funds’ advancement and communications programs, helping raise significant funds to advance gender, reproductive, and racial equity across the United States.

Tim Peterson is an established curator and advocate for artists, equity, access and transparency. Peterson previously served as Executive Director and Chief Curator for the Center for Maine Contemporary Art (Rockland, Maine), Chief Curator for the SCAD Museum of Art (Savannah), and  Founding Director of Franklin Art Works (Minneapolis), with prior positions at Lannan Foundation (Los Angeles), the Walker Art Center (Minneapolis), and the Provincetown International Film Festival.

Jennifer is a seasoned philanthropy professional, committed to systems change and catalyzing lasting social impact. She brings her entrepreneurial spirit and experience leading cross-sector partnerships to translate vision into creative strategy, impactful programs and alignment of partners for action. Jennifer has two decades of experience leading and consulting on a wide range of philanthropic and social impact projects in the non-profit sector. She has led successful multi-sector, systems change initiatives focused on addressing social determinants at the community, policy and systems level, including a public/private start-up initiative, Shine On SF. 

Cambria comes to Saint Vincent’s Day Home from Girl Scouts of Northern America, where she worked in various roles for over a decade, most recently as Vice President of Workplace Operations and Customer Success. As leader of her team, she tackled challenges including optimizing resources, fostering inclusivity, collaborating with families, and driving strategic growth.

Erin has over twenty years of experience as a nonprofit leader providing a broad range of housing and supportive services to people in need, with a strong background in fundraising, program management, and fiscal strategy. Prior to her most recent work as a consultant and leadership development coach, Erin spent nearly twelve years at the Unity Council, where she held many roles including Director of Property Management, Executive Vice President, Chief Operating Officer and ultimately President.

Jolly was for more than 14 years the Executive Director of the historic Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center in the Berkshires of western Massachusetts. She has also served as a Vice President at the Trustees of Reservations where she oversaw cultural properties throughout Massachusetts at the nation’s oldest land conservation organization, dedicated to preserving and sharing sites of natural and historical significance.

With over twenty five years of experience in nonprofit leadership, Michelle Heritage has been committed to serving vulnerable communities throughout her career. A skilled fundraiser with a proven ability to lead organizations through transformative change, Michelle has an unwavering dedication to creating a healthier world through strategic leadership and collaboration. As Executive Director, she will be responsible for managing ABF’s staff, finances, brand, partner relationships and other resources, in order to fund innovative brain research. 

With over fifteen years of fundraising experience in the performing arts sector, Liu brings expertise in donor cultivation and development, programming, and community building. As Executive Director, Liu will expand the Edmonds Center for the Arts’ audience and donor base, lead the strategic planning process, and spearhead the transformation of the public facility’s physical footprint.

Rachel brings nearly thirty years of experience in public relations, advertising, marketing, and community engagement with a focus in events and tourism, economic development, and government relations. Most recently, she served as Director of External Relations at the Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History & Culture, where she worked passionately to promote Baltimore as a creative hub and to attract tourists to the city while advocating for grassroots artists and the promotion of the cultural economy.

Nicole is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with fifteen years of experience in community mental health. Nicole’s knowledge is vast, with many years of direct service and ten years of clinical supervision and senior leadership. Nicole’s most recent position was as Director of Behavioral Health at West Oakland Health Council. In that role, she oversaw the mental health and substance abuse disorder teams for children and adult services.