Our Board of Directors
Jon Blinder | President
Chair, Fund and Board Development Committees, and member, Committee for Equity
With 20 years of Board experience, Jon was President of the Board of Directors for The Center for the Arts in Grass Valley for almost 9 years out of his 13 in service. He has deep experience working in Public Benefit Corporations, including organizational, fund development and public outreach. He is also a member of the Advisory Board of Hospice of the Foothills, and of the Board of Directors at Nevada County Economic Resource Council – representing the arts community through his role with NCArts. Originally from New York, Jon has lived in Nevada County for almost 30 years and currently lives in Nevada City. He is the only remaining founding member of Nevada County Arts Council (NCArts) in its current form. Jon chairs our Executive, Fund Development and Board Development Committees.
Donn K Harris
Board Development Committee, and member, Committee for Equity
Donn is Nevada County Arts Council’s newest member of its board of directors. His most recent position, prior to moving to Nevada County, was as Director of Creativity at San Francisco Unified School District, and before this, from 2007, was Executive and Artistic Director of the Oakland School for the Arts. Earlier, Mr. Harris served as the Principal of the San Francisco School of the Arts, where he created a sister school, The Academy of Arts and Sciences, offering the arts to students without prior experience. Mr. Harris received his BA and MA in Theatre Arts from CSULA, and holds teaching credentials in English and Special Education. Governor Jerry Brown appointed Mr, Harris to the California Arts Council in January 2014, and served three successive terms as its Chair. Mr. Harris also serves as the Vice President of the National Arts Schools Network and is on the board of the Engineers Alliance for the Arts. He is a writer and thought leader, and also serves the board of directors for Color Me Human.
Shelly Covert
Tribal Liaison, Nisenan Tribe and member, Committee for Equity
Shelly is Secretary and Spokesperson for the Nevada City Rancheria Tribal Council; Nisenan Coordinator at the Nevada County Firehouse No. 1 Museum; and Executive Director, California Heritage: Indigenous Research Project (CHIRP). In these roles, respectively, she nourishes the cultivation of Nisenan culture, ensures the documentation of Tribal histories and genealogies; and oversees research, documentation, preservation and protection of California Indigenous culture more broadly. She is a musician – performing regularly across the county. Shelly is a key consultant for us on a number of our programs, ensuring respectful engagement with our Tribal peoples and key teamwork within our OF/BY/ALL initiative within our California Cultural Districts and across the county.
Abdul Leblanc
Member, Committee for Equity
Abdul currently works with Telestream as a Support Specialist, but he has a diverse background, in verbal and non-verbal expression, surrounded by artist and with a strong background in music, having been Tour Manager for Manphibian Inc. in Los Angeles. Abdul serves on our internally focused Committee for Cultural Equity, and on our public facing Community of Practice for Equity in the Arts for Creative Sector Leadership, and is an NU Alum.
Michelle Amador
Member, Committee for Equity
Michelle is an artist and experienced arts leader, currently serving as Director of Development for the Mark Morris Dance Group in New York, commuting from Nevada County. Prior to this, she provided interim leadership for Issue Project Room as it grew from an experimental arts organization into an influential cultural hub. She has worked for award-winning string quartet ETHEL and San Jose and San Francisco jazz organizations on the West Coast. As a published singer-songwriter and performer, she has been featured at BAM Cafe, Pete's Candy Store,and LA's Hotel Café, among others. Her music has been featured on NPR, Swiss Television, and radio stations worldwide as well as through collaborative art works at the Laumeiere Sculpture Garden and the Pasadena Museum of California Art. Of Peruvian descent, she is a member of Women of Color in the Arts. Her role on the governing body of the Nevada County Arts Council as a member of the Fund Development Committee and the OF/BY/ALL Committee.
Jesse Locks
Co-Chair, Fund Development and Marketing Committees
Jesse is a communications specialist with fifteen years of experience in publishing, film, radio, and multimedia. Currently, Jesse is the Festival Director of the award-winning Nevada City Film Festival, founder of Folk Trails Hiking Club, and owner of Locks Media Group, a creative marketing, communications and multimedia firm that works with non-profits, arts organizations and social good businesses. Her writing has been featured in publications such as Thrasher, Heckler, Alternative Press, Tape Op, Seattle Weekly, Arthur Magazine and ESPN. She was named one of the top 25 “New Creatives” in Northern California by Sacramento News & Review, one of 50 “Emerging Sages” by the Center for Non-Profit Leadership, and is an alumni of the National Alliance for Media Arts & Culture Leadership Institute. Jesse graduated from UC Santa Cruz with a BA in Literature and Journalism. Jesse co-Chairs our Fund Development Committee and assists us with market strategy and social media implementation.
JoAnn Marie
Chair, Literary Arts Committee
JoAnn is Chair of our Literary Arts Committee, and one of the most networked people locally in terms of writing, poetry and the literary arts. Currently President at the League of Women Voters of Western Nevada County, she is also Chair of Citizens Oversight Committee at Nevada County Library, a member of Nevada County Reads & Writes, Nevada County Superintendent of Schools and County Libraries, and the Civil Grand Jury. JoAnn Marie is at the core of our work towards maintaining and growing a flourishing literary arts culture in Nevada County, starting with the continuation of our new flagship program, the annual Sierra Poetry Festival.
Catharine Bramkamp
Member, Fund Development and Marketing Committees
Catharine Bramkamp is Chief Storytelling Officer for various organizations across California, including - closer to home - Nevada County Economic Resource Council. She is also a writing coach, author of 15 books, a poetry anthology editor and conference organizer. She and her husband Andrew Hutchins, raised two boys in Sonoma County where she worked for United Way of the Wine Country, Sonoma State University, the wine industry and taught at three universities. A world traveler, her favorite countries invariably include a thriving wine and beer culture.