During her 30-year career as an arts management professional, Margie lead a broad range of large-scale projects in West Africa, Los Angeles, and Dallas in addition to consulting across the United States. Margie has contributed to public policy development in areas of public participation in the arts, arts education and cultural planning, working with both City Manager and strong Mayor forms of government. She most recently founded MJR Partners, a consulting firm based in Dallas, Texas and will continue her focus on strengthening leadership, operations and programs for cultural institutions. Currently, Margie serves as the Vice-President of Programs for Big Thought, an organization focused on closing the opportunity gap in education through creative learning.

As Vice President for Programs, Margie oversees the development of high-quality in school and out of school time enrichment programs for students in the Dallas Independent School District. A secondary but equally important aspect of the role of Vice President for Programs is the parallel development of a strong, diverse, and highly skilled workforce of teaching artists to support an arts integrated curriculum of learning for our children. Margie holds a bachelor's degree in speech and theater from Washington State University and a master of fine arts degree in theater from Trinity University in San Antonio, TX.

Session(s):
Creating a Dynamic Five-Star Board for the 21st Century

Giselle "Gigi" Antoni is President and CEO of Big Thought, one of the nation's leading nonprofits devoted to closing the opportunity gap in education through creative learning. Gigi leads the organization in developing groundbreaking partnerships, including Thriving Minds, a citywide initiative that joins the City of Dallas, the Dallas Independent School District, and more than 100 other organizations, with Big Thought as managing partner. She was also instrumental in forming a partnership with the North Texas Super Bowl XLV Host Committee to implement SLANT 45, one of the largest communitywide service-learning programs for children in U.S. and NFL history. In July 2011, The White House named Gigi a "Champion of Change" which recognizes community members doing outstanding work in their fields.

Gigi has worked for more than 20 years in the arts education field as an administrator, educator, community developer, and performing artist. Her alma maters are Stephen F. Austin State University; the University of Texas at Arlington; and the Drama Studio London at Berkeley, where she graduated with distinction

Session(s):
Creating a Dynamic Five-Star Board for the 21st Century

Jan Masaoka joined the California Association of Nonprofits (CalNonprofits) as CEO in January of 2012. CalNonprofits is a statewide membership organization that has just launched a Vote with Your Mission campaign with the goal of having 100 percent of eligible nonprofit staff and volunteers vote.

She is a leading writer and thinker on nonprofit organizations with particular emphasis on boards of directors, business planning, and the role of nonprofits in society.

Her books include Best of the Board Café (Fieldstone), Nonprofit Sustainability (Jossey Bass), and The Nonprofit's Guide to HR (Nolo Press). Jan founded and edits Blue Avocado magazine, often described as the second-best read publication in the nonprofit sector.

Prior to Blue Avocado, she served 14 years as executive director of CompassPoint Nonprofit Services, a national consulting and training firm for nonprofits based in San Francisco. In that position she was named Nonprofit Executive of the Year by Nonprofit Times in 2003. She is an eight-time designee as one of the "Fifty Most Influential" people in the nonprofit sector nationwide. She is an active volunteer and board member in community activities, including current work on the creation of a federal credit unions for nonprofits.

Session(s):
Creating a Dynamic Five-Star Board for the 21st Century

Mr. Thibodeau founded Arts Consulting Group (ACG) in 1997 in Los Angeles, now with locations throughout the United States, to provide hands-on interim management, executive search, fundraising & marketing consulting, facilities & program planning, and organizational development services to a diverse range of arts and culture organizations. He has worked in all of ACG’s service areas, including projects related to effective governance, management, strategic planning, and community engagement services Mr. Thibodeau has more than 25 years of arts and nonprofit management experience, and prior to founding ACG, was the Executive Director of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra bringing the orchestra to a live statewide audience through radio broadcasts, nationally on Public Radio International, and internationally on a Grammy-nominated recording. He previously held management roles at the Boston Symphony, Hartford Symphony, Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival, Museum of Contemporary Art – Los Angeles, and Price Waterhouse. Mr. Thibodeau has a bachelor of music degree from The Hartt School at the University of Hartford, an M.B.A. and a Certificate in Advanced Management Studies from the F.W. Olin Graduate School of Business at Babson College, and is currently completing a part-time Doctorate of Business Administration degree at the Grenoble École de Management (France) with research focused on how stakeholders influence the development of nonprofit arts and cultural facilities.

Session(s):

Creating a Dynamic Five-Star Board for the 21st Century