Meet the New Jerome Staff
“This is a thrilling moment at the Foundation, as we open our doors in new ways to artists and to organizations—and the arrival of new staff could not be more optimally timed. The Board and I are both excited and grateful that such extraordinary individuals have chosen to join the staff at this moment. We all look forward to the road ahead.”
—Ben Cameron, Jerome Foundation President
Eleanor Savage has been named Program Director. Savage has been on the program staff at the Jerome Foundation for over 9 years and most recently served as Acting Program Director.
Venessa Fuentes joined the Jerome Foundation as Program Officer in May 2017, having previously served in two different roles at the Bush Foundation. Most recently, she was part of the Communications Team and led story-sharing efforts that helped elevate the Bush Foundation’s investments. Fuentes joined the Community Innovation Team as one of the first Ron McKinley Philanthropy Fellows in 2014. She’s held various roles, including program management and philanthropy writing, at Twin Cities arts and social services nonprofits. Fuentes is a poet, essayist, and an arts advocate who lives in south Minneapolis with her family.
Chitra Vairavan joined in May 2017 as Administrative and Communications Associate. For the past ten years she has served as the Program Coordinator for the Interprofessional Center for Counseling and Legal Services at the University of St. Thomas School of Law. Chitra is a contemporary Indian dancer and choreographer, and a recipient of the 2016 McKnight Fellowship for Dance. She is a co-founding member of Ananya Dance Theatre and a dance collaborator with Aniccha Arts. Chitra has a master’s in International Leadership Development from the University of St. Thomas and is a graduate of the University of Minnesota.
Andrea Brown joined as Grants Administrator in December 2016. She was with the Walker Art Center for five years, most recently as the Associate Director of Strategic Marketing. After graduating from Smith College, she started at the American Academy in Berlin, then took a 7-year detour into software as an account supervisor at Marketing Bridge/Gage Marketing before returning to the arts.
Matt Stowell, Controller, and Hannah Ericksen, Senior Accountant, of CliftonLarsonAllen LLP joined the Finance office in December 2016. Both serve in CLA’s Public Sector Group, specializing in foundations, social service organizations, and other nonprofit organizations and bring a combined 15 years of experience to the Foundation.