Springboard for The Arts

Springboard has a network of Artist Career Counselors (ACCs) all across Minnesota, each of whom is a working artist, well-established in his or her field, with considerable experience in mentoring and teaching individual artists. To schedule a consultation with one of our ACC's, please fill out a Consultation Request Form. For a more in-depth series of consultations, consider our new Artists' Field Guide.

STAFF ACCs

Kathleen Richert
Visual Arts
Tel: 651-292-3205
E-mail: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
A Minnesota native, Kathleen Richert graduated magna cum laude from the School for American Craft at the Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester, NY, with a BFA in Textile Design.   She was awarded a residency at the Shelburne Craft School, Shelburne, VT, in 1992. She teaches and shows her artwork regionally and nationally, and has work in both public and private collections, including the Minnesota Historical Society and the Frederick R. Weisman Art Museum, and the American Swedish Institute. Kathleen has run a business for ten years designing and creating clothing and soft props for museums, theater, commercial and private clients. In 2006, Kathleen received a Jerome Foundation/Minnesota Center for Book Arts Fellowship.  Kathleen is responsible for the design of Springboard's Work of Art: Business Skills for Artists workshop curriculum and has presented Springboard workshops all over Minnesota, Wisconsin, and the Dakotas. Kathleen also manages Springboard’s new Adjunct Career Consultant Program.

Noah Keesecker
Music, Dance
Tel: 651-292-3206
E-mail: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Noah Keesecker is a composer and multimedia artist and has served as an organizer for a number of events in the Twin Cities such as the Spark Festival of Electronic Music and Arts, the West Bank Arts Quarter Collective, and Salon3136 Concert Series. He has had numerous awards and commissions of his work, including an American Composers Forum Subito grant, McKnight Foundation Fellowship in Composition and most recently a Jerome Fund for New Music. Noah has an M.A. in Music Composition, with a minor in Art, from the University of Minnesota and a B.A. in Music Composition and Theory from Central Michigan University.

Zaraawar Mistry
Theater, Performance, Storytelling
Tel: 651-789-2282
E-mail: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Born in India, Zaraawar Mistry has been a theater artist and consultant in the Twin Cities for over fifteen years. He and his wife, Leslye Orr, currently own and operate Dreamland Arts, a 40-seat theater attached to their home in St. Paul. Zaraawar was co-founder of the Center for Independent Artists in Minneapolis, and a former Associate Artistic Director at Theater Mu. As an actor he has performed at the Guthrie, the Children’s Theater Company and Mixed Blood Theater. He has collaborated as an actor, writer and director with Ragamala Music and Dance Theater. Zaraawar has an M.F.A. in Theatre from UC, San Diego and a B.A. from Bennington College in Vermont. He has received numerous grants in support of his work. He has taught theater classes at many organizations and colleges in the Twin Cities, including as an Adjunct Professor at Hamline University.

Fill out a Consultation Request Form.

ADJUNCT ACCs

David Unowsky
Writing & Publishing
For 34 years, David Unowsky owned and ran Hungry Mind (later known as Ruminator), one of America's  great bookstores which also fostered a literary magazine and a publishing company. As a writer he has been published in Bookselling This Week, Ruminator Review, USA Today, and mnartists.org. At Hungry Mind, he helped build the national author tour market, pioneered in building partnerships and co-sponsorships with other businesses, non-profits, and libraries; and created multi-media events pairing readings with music, art, and film. Starting from scratch, he built a first class event series at Magers and Quinn Booksellers. Currently David is an account executive at the American Jewish World newspaper and Director of Development for the Saint Paul Almanac.

Katie Ka Vang
Performance, Writing
Katie Ka Vang is a performance artist, writer and diaspora rocker. She has received grants for her work from Jerome Foundation and Minnesota State Arts Board. She has been seen on stages around the Twin Cities and nationally. Her chapbook Never Said is currently available for purchase and her work can be seen in publications such as St. Paul Almanac, Bakka Mag., and Asian American Press. She has an education in Innovation and Marketing Management from Concordia University- St. Paul and has done marketing and promoting for Pangea World Theater, Center for Hmong Arts and Talent, Pillsbury House Theater and other political and grassroots initiatives. She is also a part of the Young Emerging Leaders of Color, a national initiative created by Theater Communications Group, (American Theatre Magazine) focused on identifying faces of performance and creating action plans to connect to the greater community. Katie is the Director of Artist Service and Membership for the Center for Hmong Arts and Talent and is available to meet with artists at Springboard or CHAT.

Fill out a Consultation Request Form.

REGIONAL ACCs

Kathy Gustafson
Region 2 Arts Council (Region 2)
Counties: Beltrami, Clearwater, Hubbard, Lake of the Woods, Mahnomen
Kathy Gustafson is a largely self-taught artist, who has been successful in several media; receiving numerous awards in juried exhibits, displaying her work in a variety of galleries, and participating in several public art venues.  Her current works are mostly Acrylic/mixed media paintings on canvas and welded metal sculptures, however she has also illustrated a book of poetry, and hopes to do more in that field. She taught art at a local private school for ten years, and continues to teach both children and adults at her home studio. Kathy was one of the founding members of Gallery North,(an artists cooperative gallery), she has been an active member of the Artists of Minnesota organization for nearly 3 decades, and since 2008 has been representing Beltrami County on the Region 2 Arts Council board.

Sam Black
Arrowhead Regional Arts Council (Region 3)
Counties: Aitkin, Carlton, Cook, Itasca, Koochiching, Lake, Saint Louis
Sam Black is educated in comparative literature, music theory/history/performance, and Biblical text history and criticism. He has taught college writing and literature classes as an adjunct professor and spent four years as a college administrator with international students. He continues to teach courses on literature and music for the College of St. Scholastica. Sam is a performing musician: choral conductor, pianist/organist, and organizer, performing a broad spectrum of music. He has created music programs in Lake and St. Louis counties as a soloist and as a pianist/organist with the Gichigami Trio. He has performed throughout the region, including western WI. Since 2000, Sam has been the primary free-lance music critic/reviewer for the Duluth News Tribune. He was a board member of the Arrowhead Regional Arts Council for several years, and is currently on ARAC staff as Assistant Director. Sam has traveled extensively across the Arrowhead counties, talking with artists and organizations about ARAC, and about surviving as artists.

Ann Klefstad
Arrowhead Regional Arts Council (Region 3)
Counties: Aitkin, Carlton, Cook, Itasca, Koochiching, Lake, Saint Louis
Ann Klefstad is an artist and writer in Duluth. She has spent a number of years doing arts journalism, as a freelance writer, as editor for mnartists.org, as a newspaper reporter, and now again as a freelance writer of news and features for magazines. She is also an artist, creating and showing installations such as Forest as well as the Walk on Water series of photos and photosculptures, and doing public sculpture commissions. She does consulting for organizations who want to add art to their environment and for artists and writers who need help with developing and funding projects.

Michele Anderson
Lake Region Arts Council (Region 4)
Counties: Becker, Clay, Douglas, Grant, Otter Tail, Pope, Stevens, Traverse, Wilkin
Michele Anderson is a writer, composer and classical pianist. Michele has developed and managed after-school music programs, community partnerships, artist residencies and cultural events through her work with Ethos Music Center and the Interstate Firehouse Cultural Center in Portland, Oregon, and also worked in the Education and Community Engagement department for the Oregon Symphony. She has a B.A. in music from Lewis and Clark College and is currently obtaining her M.A. in Cultural Sustainability from Goucher College. After 11 years in Portland, Michele is returning to Minnesota, her home state, to manage Springboard for the Arts' new programs in the Fergus Falls area.

Mary Warner
Five Wings Arts Council (Region 5)
Counties: Cass, Crow Wing, Morrison, Todd, Wadena
Mary Warner is a writer and fiber artist. She received a BFA in visual arts with a concentration in weaving from St. Cloud State University and practices a number of fiber arts, including knitting, crocheting, weaving, embroidery, beading, and sewing. Her interest in writing developed after college. She has authored numerous essays, short stories, and sestinas, as well as writing and self-publishing a book of linked short stories called "Greenville: Where Longing Meets Loss." In the course of her work as Museum Manager for the Morrison County Historical Society, she wrote and designed the book "A Big Hearted Paleface Man: Nathan Richardson and the History of Morrison County, Minnesota," winner of an Award of Merit in 2007 from the American Association for State and Local History. Her writing can be found online at The Woo Woo Teacup Journal blog (http://woowooteacup.wordpress.com).

Nicole DeBoer
Southwest Minnesota Arts & Humanities Council (Regions 6E, 6W, 8)
Counties: Big Stone, Chippewa, Cottonwood, Jackson, Kandiyohi, Lincoln, Lac qui Parle, Lyon, McLeod, Meeker, Murray, Nobles, Pipestone, Redwood, Renville, Rock, Swift, Yellow Medicine
After much consideration of theatre, radio/TV and photography, Nicole DeBoer graduated from Southwest Minnesota State University with an Interdisciplinary degree in 1990. She worked for 19 years as an award-winning project manager and creative director on a multitude of successful marketing campaigns and corporate events that supported brands both domestically and internationally. With graphic design as the foundation of her work career, Nicole continues to enjoy painting and photography as her artistic outlet.  Today she works as the Program Assistant at the SW MN Arts & Humanities Council, which supports artists in an 18-county region.

Linda Rother
East Central Reginoal Arts Council (Region 7E)
Counties: Chisago, Isanti, Kanabec, Mille Lacs, Pine
Linda Rother is a visual artist with experience in diverse medium. Graduating with a BFA from the University of Minnesota, she studied with Mary Abbott (abstract expressionism), and Warren MacKenzie and Curt Hoard (clay). For several years Linda produced installations with no limitation of media, using found objects, photography, lighting, paint, clay and video. These installations brought her many accolades, including McKnight and Jerome Foundation grants. Her knowledge and passion as a photographer eventually led her to support herself as a freelance photographer. In the last 10 years, Linda moved to a rural area and purchased a traditional photo studio, which she currently owns and operates. She also judges at county fairs, teaches, and serves as a mentor. Of her work as a photographer, Linda says, “ My work is my passion; everyday I am able to be creative, either as a photographer or by printing my images. What I strive for in my work is to keep my mind open, to take risks and to work outside of the box. I have so many experiences and skills that I want to share with other artists, from writing grants to running a small business. I look forward to this next journey as an Artist Career Counselor with Springboard for the Arts.”

Dave Glenn
Central Minnesota Arts Board (Region 7W)
Counties: Benton, Sherburne, Stearns, Wright
Dave Glenn is both an artist and a community arts advocate/activist.  He is a potter making artwork to be used daily focusing on glazes of the 15th and 16th century Japanese and Chinese traditions. He has served as a volunteer for the past 35 years in a variety of arts and community events, arts organizations and panels, municipal, regional and statewide committees, task forces and boards, and has also worked on the development of two community art centers.  His focus is on grass roots arts programming, bringing arts opportunities to large numbers of people at various interest levels in an engaging manner.  He strives to demonstrate that the arts are woven throughout our daily lives and that everyone needs a chance to explore their own creativity. In his “day job” he serves as the Executive Director of The Minnesota Project an environmental non-profit that advances Minnesota community based solutions at the intersection of energy, agriculture and food sustainability.

Judy Saye-Willis
Southeastern Minnesota Arts Council (Region 10)
Counties: Dodge, Fillmore, Freeborn, Goodhue, Houston, Olmstead, Mower, Rice, Steele, Wabasha, Winona
Judy Saye-Willis has extensive business experience in start–ups, management, finance and marketing. She has organized multiple artist and community festivals and events. She began working in fiber arts in the 1960’s and in 2002 started making beaded jewelry. Her work has been juried into national competition, been included in several publications and is in private collections. Judy has gradually moved into silver work and one of a kind signature pieces. Her current textile work includes Shibori scarves and felted scarves. She has become interested in book arts and books with wooden covers and Ethiopian bindings. Judy is a former Executive Director of Faribault Arts Center and a current Board Member of the Southeastern Minnesota Arts Council.

Fill out a Consultation Request Form.