Faculty & Staff

Students in arts administration programs at BU learn from leading professionals who have expertise in the most current challenges, trends, and best practices in the field. As practitioners, and not simply theorists, program faculty offer rich perspectives and insights that provide students with a uniquely hands-on approach to study—and that ground the arts administration curriculum in the realities of today’s arts organizations.

Perhaps most important of all, many arts administration program faculty are themselves musicians, photographers, painters, collectors, and performers, which means that they share with students a fundamental appreciation for the importance of maintaining a central place for the arts in the contemporary world.

Faculty & Staff

Barker, Ilana

Ilana Barker (AR 721 – Advanced Arts Marketing Analytics) has over 15 years of experience working in marketing and data analytics management across multiple industries, but her passion has always been for the arts. She currently works full-time for the Flint Institute of Music (FIM) in Flint, Michigan, as Director of CRM and Analytics, and is able to excel at the role from her remote home office in Boston. More

Blackadar, Lucas

Lucas Blackadar (AR 778 – Legal Issues) is the Deputy Director for the Arts and Business Council of Greater Boston, where he manages the Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts of Massachusetts and Connecticut. An arts and entertainment lawyer, Luke advises artists, creative workers, and arts and cultural organizations of all creative disciplines in matters concerning intellectual property, contracts, and business formation and governance. More

Caolo, Melissa

Melissa Caolo (AR 752 – Strategies for Performing Arts Businesses) has enjoyed a career managing in several capacities in the performing arts. Her roots as a stage manager and production manager, and arts administrator led to opportunities as an educator. Her work in stage and production management includes positions at major American dance companies, touring extensively in the United States and throughout the world; most notably, New York City Ballet, Trisha Brown Dance Company, and the Martha Graham Dance Company among others. More

Cramer, Lissa

Lissa Cramer (AR 774 – Managing Visual Arts Organizations) is the Director of the Boston University Art Galleries. She received her MS in Arts Administration from Boston University and a BA in Art History from the University of Kansas. She has previously worked for The Art Institute of Chicago, The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City, MO, and Tufts University Art Galleries in Medford, MA. More

DeNatale, Douglas

Douglas DeNatale, PhD (AR 690 – The Art World, AR 740 – Technology and Arts Administration, AR 749 – Research and Program Evaluation in the Arts, AR 800 – Directed Study) is the director of the Arts Administration program. Prior to joining the Metropolitan College faculty, he was the president of Community Logic, Inc., an arts consulting firm specializing in research and documentation. He previously served as director of research for the New England Foundation for the Arts (NEFA), where he played an instrumental role in forecasting the emerging creative economy and in developing the web-based research database CultureCount. More

Grossman, Jason E

Jason E. Grossman (AR 751 – Commercial Production: The Broadway Model) is a Tony and Olivier award-winning theatrical producer. Current productions include the new West End musical Kathy and Stella Solve a Murder (co-producer on UK tour), the Tony nominated and Olivier Award-winning musical Come From Away (Broadway, Toronto, North American Tour, West End, and Australia) and the musical Romantics Anonymous which premiered at Shakespeare’s Globe in the fall of 2017, and was produced at Bristol Old Vic in 2020 in anticipation of a North American tour. More

Hollis, Blair

Blair Spotswood Hollis, she/hers (AR 803 – Internship II) joined Boston Ballet as the Director of Development in June 2021 and leads Boston Ballet’s efforts to meet contributed revenue targets, diversify and grow Boston Ballet’s Boards, and shape Boston Ballet’s reputation in Boston and beyond. Previously, Hollis worked at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston for 10+ years in a variety of roles and most recently served as the Head of Institutional Relations, overseeing the Museum’s corporate, foundation, and government giving programs and partnering with 200+ leading companies and organizations across the Commonwealth and beyond.  More

Holm Hartigan, Amanda

Amanda Holm (AR 750 – Financial Management for Nonprofits), originally from Boston, is the Project Director for Economic Mobility at CFLeads. Shortly after earning her B.A. in Government and Spanish from Harvard University, Amanda began her career in the nonprofit sector, spending several years working directly with youth in the Greater Boston area. She completed her graduate degree at Boston University in 2014, earning an MBA with a focus in Public and Nonprofit Management. More.

Hughes, Jennifer R

Jennifer Ritvo Hughes (AR 771 – Managing Performing Arts Organizations) has spent the last 11 years leading performing arts organizations through a period of seismic change. She currently serves as CEO of the American Friends of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra. In her role, she leads a national team that supports one of the world’s top orchestras by developing critical opportunities for cultural ambassadorship and raising friends and funds from the US and Canadian markets. More

Ibrahim, Michael

Michael W. Ibrahim, CFRE, (Certified Fund Raising Executive), (AR 550 – Raising Funds and Grant Writing) is the Chief Program and Impact Officer at TSNE, a $70 million nonprofit management and capacity building organization that strengthens organizations working towards creating a just and equitable society. As a member of the executive leadership team, Michael oversees and develops TSNE’s national program areas, including organizational development consulting & training, executive search & transition, cohort learning, and property services. In addition, he oversees TSNE’s communications, marketing, learning, and evaluation efforts. More

Jones, Robert

Robert Jones (AR 753 – Current Trends in the Performing Arts Industry) is an advertising, marketing, and public relations professional with over 16 years of experience in the theatrical industry focused on creating and managing entertainment and cultural brands, Robert Jones has directed campaigns for over 80 Broadway shows and other performing arts institutions. Starting his career in management, he company-managed the off-Broadway production of The Awesome 80s Prom and was the Assistant Company Manager of The Drowsy Chaperone (Broadway, pre-Broadway Los Angeles) More

Kadish, Timothy

Timothy Kadish (AR 779 – Public Art Administration) is an advertising, marketing, and public relations professional with over 20 years of experience in the theatrical industry focused on creating and managing entertainment and cultural brands, Robert Jones has directed campaigns for over 100 Broadway shows and other performing arts institutions. More

Karabatsos, Lew

Lew Karabatsos (AR 723 – Individual Fundraising) is a consulting grant writer for nonprofits, including Children’s Hospital Boston (MA) and the University of Massachusetts Lowell Libraries. His career in corporate America spans from being Vice President, Corporate Philanthropy and Workplace Communications for Monster Worldwide (MA) and Executive Vice President of Client Relations for CreateHope (Washington, D.C.), to Director of Global Philanthropy for Hewlett Packard (CA). More 

Lauricella, Anita

Anita M. Lauricella (AR 804 – Advanced Management and Consulting) has been committed throughout her professional career to applying strategic thinking, operational assessments, and financial analysis to serve community nonprofit and public-focused organizations. Since 2001 she has worked as an independent consultant, providing financial management, coalition-building, facility development, and strategic planning consulting to organizations involved in the arts, community service, and education. Recent projects have focused on place management, arts-based placemaking, cultural facilities, and cultural economic development. More

Lynch-McWhite, Wyona

Wyona Lynch-McWhite (AR 781 – Special Topics) is Executive Director of the Social Innovation Forum in Boston MA.  The Social Innovation Forum is a place based intermediary organization that creates positive social change in Greater Boston by engaging leaders, strengthening organizations and building networks with a priority on those who are historically excluded in traditional philanthropy. More

Miller, Ross

Ross Miller (AR 779 – Public Art Administration) is a visual artist whose work integrates art into the public landscape. Through site based projects he seeks to create community identity in outdoor spaces, and create places for private reflection within public environments. Rather than imposing a specific medium or content on a site, the ideas evolve by examining the site’s ecological and social history, patterns of pedestrian activity, quality of light, and proposed future uses in order to create public artwork that makes direct connection with the site, heightening one’s experience of being in that specific place. More

O’Neal, Lauren

Lauren O’Neal (AR 690 – The Art World, AR 766 – Arts and the Community, AR 781 – Special Topics, AR 802 – Internship I, and AR 803 – Internship II) is currently a senior lecturer in the Graduate Program in Arts Administration and a recipient of a Designing Antiracist Curricula Fellowship at Boston University. Prior to joining the faculty, O’Neal served as the director and curator of the Lamont Gallery at Phillips Exeter Academy and as a visiting fellow at the Harvard Kenneth C. Griffin Graduate School of Arts and Sciences.   More

Orlinoff, David

David Orlinoff (AR 750 – Financial Management for Nonprofits) has been teaching the Financial Management class in the Arts Administration program since 2005. He is a financial executive and consultant, specializing in mission-based organizations. Over more than 30 years in the nonprofit sector,  David has been the interim or full-time CFO of such organizations as Franklin Pierce University, Lasell University, DeCordova Museum, Oxfam America, Combined Jewish Philanthropies, Education Development Center, Facing History and Ourselves, and Boston Ballet. More

Peterson, Nicholas

Nicholas Peterson (AR 720 – Marketing and Audience Development for the Arts) brings over 25 years of theatre experience both onstage and off and has worked on marketing and web strategies for arts, non-profit organizations, and small businesses since the dot-com boom of the late 1990s/early 2000s. Since 2010, he has worked at Central Square Theater as the Director of Marketing. More

Phillips, Danielle

Danielle M. Phillips (Olsen) (AR 722 Educational Programming in Cultural Intuitions) is the Director of Programming at the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Mass, the oldest continuously operating museum in the United States, renowned for its 200-year legacy and global collection of art and culture. Beyond her expertise in learning initiatives and nonprofit development, Danielle has contributed significantly to creating interactive, interdisciplinary exhibitions and artist residencies. More

Ranalli, Daniel

Daniel Ranalli, Associate Professor Emeritus is the founding director of Arts Administration at Boston University. Joining BU in 1992, he served as the Arts Administration program director for 23 years—teaching Art World, Arts in Barcelona, and Arts in Cuba—and initiated the degree program’s international travel courses. A working visual artist for over 35 years, Daniel’s work can be found in the permanent collections of more than 30 museums, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York, Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the Nelson-Atkins Museum, and the Smithsonian National Gallery of American Art. More

Ruddock, Emily

Emily Ruddock (AR 730 – Political and Public Advocacy for the Arts) is the Executive Director of MASS Creative. MASS Creative is the statewide arts and cultural advocacy organization, and has been one of the most effective arts advocacy organizations in the nation since its founding in 2012. Emily is nationally recognized for her advocacy leadership, serving as a Board Member for the Massachusetts Nonprofit Network and as co-chair of the Program Committee for Americans for the Arts State Arts Advocacy Network.  More

Schaffrath, Jon

Jon Schaffrath (AR 723 – Individual Fundraising) has worked in nonprofit fundraising at Harvard Business School since 2006, serving in development roles of increasing responsibility and, since 2021, as Senior Director of Development Strategic Initiatives. He advances strategic fundraising priorities and leads innovative alumni engagement efforts, specifically focused on the entrepreneur community. More

Schnepp, Steven

Steven Schnepp (AR 754 – Global Performing Arts Presenting and Producing) is the president of Broadway Booking Office NYC, a theatrical tour booking, marketing and press agency representing touring Broadway, London-based shows and family productions. With over 38 years of experience in the entertainment industry, Steve has collaborated on more than 75 productions. More

Simboski, Mary Doorley

Mary Doorley Simboski, ACFRE (Advanced Certified Fund Raising Executive) (AR 711 – Capital Campaigns) is a development professional with more than 30 years of experience in fundraising. She has planned and directed capital and annual campaigns for social service, arts, educational, and health care organizations. Currently, she is Managing Director for Changing Our World, a global consulting firm working in fundraising, corporate social responsibility, analytics, and communications. She has served in many roles for the Association of Fundraising Professionals at the local and national levels and currently serves as a member of the global Ethics Committee.  More

Weeks, Jason

Jason Weeks (AR 766 – Arts and the Community) is the executive director of the Cambridge Arts, a city department and public nonprofit agency that engages residents and visitors through programming designed to stimulate awareness, participation, and support for the arts. Jason works with an advisory board, trustees of the nonprofit, Cambridge Public Art Commission, elected officials, city administration, and agency staff to oversee an award-winning Public Art Program, agency grantmaking… More

Younge, Nana

Nana Younge (AR 789 – Creative Startups) is the Program Director at Boston University’s Student Innovation Center, Innovate@BU, where she designs and leads programs that support venture creation, innovation education, and student leadership development. She works with students across disciplines to help them transform ideas into actionable projects, strengthen their problem-solving skills, and connect their academic experiences to meaningful real-world impact. More