MFA Alumni Profiles

   
Sarah Butler holds a deep passion for the art of fashion and is passionately involved in the local fashion community of Seattle. Graduating from Seattle University with a BA is Visual Arts and Humanities, she fostered her connection to all arts while closely pursuing her deep interest in fashion by founding the Fashion Club of Seattle University. By graduation she had produced three annual fashion shows to showcase local designers to the community and bring awareness to the non-profit Dress of Success. Following graduation, she has been working for Kemper Development Company to produce Fashion Week at the Bellevue Collection in collaboration with Vogue Magazine. Adding the Independent Designer Runway Show is 2012, the new show is now an established kick-starter program for Northwest designers. After selection, the designers go through a six month mentorship process from a panel of industry leaders with the end result of each designer presenting a ten look collection on the runway. She is happy to aid in the growth of the Northwest fashion industry that is so important to our local culture and community by means of this program. Keep up with her on her blog, sarahstylesseattle.com

Tyrone Brown is a Seattle-based theatre director and producer. Directing credits include POOF!, Hot Grits: A (Punk) Play On Music, Black To My Roots: African American Tales from the Head and Heart ( Fringe First Award winner at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in Edinburg, Scotland), Wreck The Airline Barrier, and Hamlet X: The Tragedy of El Hajj Malik El Shabazz. He holds a Bachelors of Arts in Theatre from Western Washington University, a Performing Arts Management Certificate from the University of Washington Extension Program, and is an alumni of the Drama League Directing Program in New York. He is currently the artistic director of the newly re-founded Brownbox Theatre, a company dedicated to the creation, development, and production of contemporary and original African American theatre. brownbox@gmail.com

Greg Dole received a Bachelor’s of Landscape Architecture with a concentration in Art History from Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. After graduation, Greg worked as the Arts Education Assistant at the Arts Council of Greater Baton Rouge and later became Assistant Manager at the Louisiana Landmarks Society in New Orleans, Louisiana. There he worked as an historic preservation advocate and led tours of the Pitot House Museum and Gardens. Since late 2007, Greg has been the Office Manager at Northwest Center’s Early Intervention Program in Seattle. In the future he hopes to manage a percent-for-the-arts program. 

Megan Dyer earned her Bachelor of Arts from Saint Louis University, studying her first two years in Madrid, Spain and completing her degree in Saint Louis, Missouri where she majored in Art History and History with special emphasis on Western European art, language and history. Most recently, she worked for the French Embassy as an English teacher in Montpellier, France, incorporating arts and cultural awareness in classes for university and high school students. For the past year, Megan has developed her passion for arts education working with Bellevue Arts Museum, first as an intern, and most recently serving as the Interim Education Curator. She is an advocate for the arts and has volunteered at several non-profit organizations, which has further strengthened her commitment to education and the promotion of arts in the community.  www.bellevuearts.org

Steve Galatro, MFA ’09, is the new executive director at Pratt Fine Arts Center in Seattle. The nonprofit is a multidisciplinary arts education center. Galatro remains an adjunct faculty member in the Fine Arts Department, where he had been the operations manager.  www.pratt.org

Leigh Ann Gilmer has spent the past five years in nonprofit development, and brings to her work a penchant for engaging new audiences through tailored communications. After earning a degree in history from Northern Arizona University, Leigh Ann developed a passion for the role museums play in preserving culture, building community, and showcasing artistic expression. Setting out to help create a meaningful experience for museum guests, she began her nonprofit career working in visitor services at the Museum of Northern Arizona in Flagstaff. Leigh Ann continued in her nonprofit track after moving to the Pacific Northwest in 2007, learning to build and strengthen donor relationships as the membership manager at the Museum of Glass in Tacoma, Washington. She currently works in annual giving at Seattle University and enjoys helping alumni, parents, and friends align their philanthropic passions with the university’s mission. Leigh Ann has recently joined the board of directors for the Fremont Abbey Arts Center, an organization that provides arts and cultural experiences for people of all ages and incomes throughout Seattle. She loves folklore and visual arts created in traditional craft media, specifically glass and textile art. Leigh Ann is currently researching trends in multi-disciplinary arts participation, along with shifts in federal and private arts funding, through the context of a changing social and political environment in recent American history.  She is also a founder of Seattle Artthrob, it works like a CSA but for artists.  30 shareholders each purchase an art share for $250. Six artists will be selected by a jury panel to create 30 limited-edition works for the shareholders (one for each member) and will receive a $1,000 stipend to complete this work.  At the end of the season, shareholders will have an opportunity to pick up their artwork as well as meet and develop relationships with the artists at an event in November.  Learn more here: www.seattleartthrob.com/ 

Laura Bell Hammarlund received her BA in Drama and a Certificate in Arts Management for the Performing Arts from the University of Washington. She also has a certificate in historical documentary filmmaking from George Washington University. She’s worked on numerous films and videos, including for KCTS-TV, the Kennedy Center Honors program, and the Women in Film awards ceremony. She served as arts outreach coordinator and trained as an art docent, teaching elementary students through the Bellevue Art Museum’s visual arts outreach program. Her practicum experiences include participation in the 2011 legislative renewal campaign for Washington Filmworks (Washington State’s film incentive program) and marketing for University of Washington’s World Series. Laura currently works in development at Seattle Musical Theatre and serves as Treasurer for The Arts Leadership Club at Seattle University.  http://seattlemusicaltheatre.org/

Loryn Hatten is a graduate of California State University, Monterey Bay holding a Bachelor of Arts in Teledramatic Arts and Technology with a focus on acting and directing for theater. From 2003 to 2010, Loryn worked fulltime for California Theatre Center, a nonprofit touring theatre organization specializing in professional theatre for youth. There she served as a director, teacher, designer, stage manager, production manager, tour director, and company manager. Her additional experience includes theater facilities management for West Valley College, and internships with The Western Stage’s Young Company Presents and Theatreworks. Loryn’s practicum work for the past year has been primarily with Seattle Children’s Theatre, serving as a teaching assistant and an intern for One Theatre World, the national conference for theatre for young audiences. http://www.cornish.edu/

 In the erratically spastic mind of Matt Hornbeck, he is a treasure seeking archaeologist or a tiger taming carnie, or even a WWE wrestler named “¡Un Poquito Diablo!” However, as acted out on the plains of reality, Matt is currently a part-time Sociology instructor at Seattle Central Community College, Argosy University, and Cascadia Community College. He previously held the position of an ordained pastor and worship leader at Vineyard Christian Fellowship in Flagstaff, AZ. Currently, Matt and his better half Roxy, are on staff at Quest Church as Associate Worship Directors.

As part of Matt’s thesis in Applied Sociology, he wrote a two act play titled, Pick-Up Artist: The Musical. The intention of the musical is to use the format of the arts to address sociologically identified inequalities and problematic trends within societal patterns and thus encourage discourse and solution based discussion around such topics. Matt and Roxy hope to use this format as the foundation for the nonprofit arts community quiet, in which Matt functions as the Executive Director. Both Matt and Roxy finished their MFA in Nonprofit Arts Leadership in June of 2011 from Seattle University. www.quietonline.org/

Roxy is one of the founding members of quiet. She holds a B.S. degree in English Education; an M.A. in Literary, Technology and Professional Writing; and an M.F.A. in Nonprofit Arts Leadership at Seattle University. As an English instructor at Seattle Central Community College and an Associate Worship Director for Quest Church, Roxy loves serving in the Seattle community. Roxy is passionate about people, passionate about responsible art and passionate about equal access. Roxy believes that art is a mechanism for change in this world, so quiet is a place where she can truly follow all of her passions. Plus, she gets to work with her stellar husband, Matt. She couldn’t do all this stuff without his support and encouragement. She serves as quiet’s Managing Director, helping to create structures and sustainable practices that allow for ALL stories to be heard. Roxy enjoys creating art too; making music and writing stories/poems are some of her favorite creative outlets. www.quietonline.org/

Adrienne Lopez received her Bachelor of Fine Arts, focusing in Sculpture, from the School of Visual Arts in New York, NY. She developed a strong passion for philanthropy in the arts while working with Creative Capital, The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts and Ronald Feldman Fine Arts. Since relocating to Seattle, WA she has continued to expand on her nonprofit experience by serving as a Program Assistant with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Teacher Assisting for Seattle University's Business of Art course, providing professional development and fundraising consultations to individual artists, and contracting as an Account Manager with World Vision. Her professional interests are strongly inspired by cultural, economic and global issues.

 Hilary Northcraft received her Bachelor of Arts from the University of Washington, majoring in Communication, with a minor in the Comparative History of Ideas. She firmly believes in the positive impact the arts can have on individuals and communities. Hilary has volunteered her time helping with events for the International Human Rights Film Festival in Cape Town, South Africa and the 826 Writing Center in Greenwood. In college, she worked to promote music for local and national bands in store fronts and at music venues. Last year, she worked with the Vera Project to compile their first professional annual report, which can be found here: http://theveraproject.org/blog/2010_annual_report_online/ . Hilary is currently helping Seattle Theatre Group create and launch a planned giving program. While her past work was primarily focused in the music industry, she also has very strong interests in writing and the visual arts. She welcomes any opportunity to hone her love of storytelling through writing and photography, whether for an individual or an organization. Hilary loves the challenge of being presented with an unfamiliar task, and looks forward to a future working in the arts.