Additional Staff Biographies

Michael Boberg is the Director of Shared Services for the Fine Arts Fund. In that role, he has the fortunate opportunity to work with representatives from organizations spanning the entire arts and culture sector. Before joining the Fine Arts Fund, he served as Director of Marketing and Public Relations for Ensemble Theatre of Cincinnati and was Music Director and on-air host for WVXU-FM throughout the 1990s. Mike served as co-chair of the Civic Pride/Community Engagement working group for the Agenda 360 Regional Planning process and is a graduate of the inaugural class of C-Change. He currently volunteers as a character coach for first graders through the Winners Walk Tall® program and serves on the advisory board for WVQC-LP 95.7 FM, a new lower-power radio station operated by Media Bridges. Mike is a native Cincinnatian, holds a BA in Communications from the University of Cincinnati and an MBA from Xavier University, and lives in Anderson Township.

Ashley Guethlein is an Associate Campaign Manager for the Fine Arts Fund where she enjoys working with various non-profit, education, and government entities. Born and raised in Cincinnati, Ashley gained an early appreciation for the arts. She earned a BA in U.S. History from Tulane University in New Orleans in 2006. Easily enamored by the city’s vibrant culture, she quickly gained a love for this unique home of jazz and gumbo. An interest in the arts led her to eventually return to Cincinnati to pursue her MA in Arts Administration and MBA at the University of Cincinnati. During her studies she had the lucky opportunity to work with many arts organizations across the region including Cincinnati Opera, Enjoy the Arts/START, the Carnegie Visual, Performing Arts Center, Cincinnati Boy Choir, among others.

Heather Hallenberg, Vice President, Arts Services, is the founding director of the Fine Arts Fund’s Arts Services Office and oversees the administration of the Associate Members Allocation process, the Fine Arts Fund’s Grants Program, Business Volunteers for the Arts® and Business on Board®. Under her leadership, the Arts Services Office received the Irma Lazarus Award from the Ohio Arts Council in 2002. Heather has a graduate degree in art and architectural history and worked for state historic preservation agencies in Nevada, Missouri and North Carolina. In 1981 she moved to Cincinnati to assume the position of Curator of Education at the Taft Museum of Art. She was also Director of Volunteers at University Hospital where she organized the first hospital visitation program for chronic AIDS patients in the state of Ohio. 

Teresa (Teri) Haught, is Vice President, Finance and Operations for the Fine Arts Fund,  a position she has held since 2005, following twelve years as the organization's Finance Director. Concurrent with her roles at the Fine Arts Fund, she also served as the Finance Director for the Taft Museum of Art for fourteen years. Before joining the Fine Arts Fund, she worked as an audit manager with KPMG and continues to maintain an active CPA license. She is a 2005 graduate of Leadership Cincinnati, a past ONE Award examiner, a 2007 and 2008 Business Courier CFO of the Year finalist, and currently serves on The Greater Cincinnati Foundation Finance Committee and in a number of leadership roles at her children's schools, including PTO president. Ms. Haught received her B.S. in Business Administration from Miami University, where she graduated magna cum laude.

Lisa Maly joined the Fine Arts Fund in September 2009 as a Communications Associate. She is a native of Cincinnati and had just moved back to the city after being away for eight years. She attended the University of Arizona, where she graduated in December 2005 with a BFA in dance. Lisa then moved to New York City to pursue a career in dance. While continuing a full dance class schedule, Lisa accepted a position with NetNames USA Inc. working with global corporate clients on their domain name portfolios and their branding use on the internet.

Despite loving life in New York City, Lisa was always pulled to her roots in, and love of, Cincinnati - so she made the decision to move back to the Queen City and live and work in the city she loves. Her goal: to bring her love and experiences of the arts, the west ... and the east coast ... to her home town and 'make a difference' in the exciting renaissance she has seen in this city.

Lisa grew up in the arts sector in our community. As a young girl and throughout her teens, she took dance classes at CCM and Cincinnati Ballet. She also performed in many Cincinnati Ballet productions, including The Nutcracker, Coppelia, A Midsummer Night's Dream, and At the Ballet.

Traci Lynn Mans is the Program Manager, Strategic Initiatives with the Fine Arts Fund. Traci manages and coordinates the arts education, multicultural arts, and community engagement initiatives, in addition to overseeing governance communications. She prepares reports to funders, researchers, and other constituents, as well as supports grant-writing efforts, regularly monitoring their progress. She uses her skills in grant writing, development, marketing, and strategic planning to create action plans, develop budgets, and design presentations.

Traci is a Stoughton High School Graduate from Stoughton, Wisconsin. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Management, as well as a certificate for music management, a special studies opportunity, at Luther College in Decorah, Iowa  in 2006. Traci graduated with two masters degrees in 2008 from the University of Cincinnati: a MBA from the College of Business and a MA from the College-Conservatory of Music in Arts Administration.

Traci is an active member of Toastmasters, a non-profit organization that develops public speaking and leadership skills through practice and feedback. She lives with her husband, a current architecture graduate student at University of Cincinnati, College of Design, Architecture, Art and Planning (DAAP), in Northside with their dog, Luther.

Mary McCullough-Hudson is President & CEO of the Fine Arts Fund, a position she has held since 1994 following ten years as the director of the Fine Arts Fund’s annual united arts campaign.  During her 30-year tenure with the organization, the Fine Arts Fund campaign has grown from $2.5 million to $11 million in 2009 (the largest such campaign in the country), a source of operating and project support for over 100 area arts organizations. In addition, over $1 million in new funding for initiatives in arts education, regional and neighborhood art centers, and diverse arts offerings was contributed in 2009.  Other notable organizational achievements have included the creation of the Arts Services office which provides capacity building programs focused on marketing, board development, fundraising and other administrative issues; including Business Volunteers for the Arts ®, Business on Board ® and the Virtual Arts Incubator.  In 2008, the Fine Arts Fund established the Arts & Culture Partnership, LLC to improve the financial sustainability and influence of the sector through increased awareness, collaboration and participation.

Mary has been a frequent consultant and presenter on united arts fundraising throughout the country.  In 2005 she was appointed to the national Board of Directors of Americans for the Arts, the nation’s leading nonprofit organization for advancing the arts in America.  Local civic leadership roles have included Agenda 360 (a Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber-led regional action plan) and the educational collaborative STRIVE.  Honors include the YWCA Career Women of Achievement award and the CCM Distinguished Alumna award.  A native Cincinnatian, McCullough-Hudson received both her bachelor and master degrees in opera performance from the University of Cincinnati’s College-Conservatory of Music.

Beth McKinney, Finance Director at the Fine Arts Fund, worked for the organization from 1987 through 1993 and rejoined the Fine Arts Fund in September 2002 after taking time off to spend with her children. She is responsible for the day-to-day accounting operations and financial reporting. After graduating from Miami University with a BS in Accounting, Beth spent seven years as an auditor in public accounting, first with Arthur Andersen & Co. and then becoming a manager at KPMG Peat Marwick. Her favorite audit client was GE Aircraft Engine. In addition to her support of the Fine Arts Fund, Beth has also volunteered with the Forest Hills school district and the Arthritis Foundation.

Thomas (Tom) McLaughlin recently joined the Fine Arts Fund as a Communications Associate. He is a native of Cincinnati and has spent several years working with some of the smaller theatre companies across the region. Tom graduated from Thomas More College in 2005 with a BA in Mathematics and a BA in Drama. Most recently he attended the University of Cincinnati/College-Conservatory of Music where he received his MBA in Arts Administration. He is currently working towards completing his research paper for his MA in Arts Administration.

Jodi Perry is a Campaign Manager for the Fine Arts Fund. During her tenure as a fundraiser Jodi has managed various business and professional divisions of the annual campaign and finds rallying a new corps of volunteers each year a unique and exciting challenge.  Before joining the organization in 2002 she worked for Dan Pinger Public Relations.  Jodi is a Cincinnati native and graduated from Xavier University in 1997 with a BA in English and Public Relations. She loves all types of music and finds satisfaction in working for a nonprofit organization that supports more than 95 arts groups throughout the region, from the "big guys" to the small community theaters. Jodi's family resides in Okeana, Ohio and she volunteers her time with her children's day care, Toys for Tots and Mother of Mercy High School.

Marcelina Robledo, Manager of Multicultural Arts Initiatives, has been in the arts for almost ten years.  In 2000, Marcelina was an Audio/Video and Web Design student at Cincinnati State.  While still a student, Marcelina joined the staff at the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra in group sales.  Marcelina made the transition to Group Sales and Facilities Rental Manager at the Playhouse in the Park from 2004 to 2006. In the spring of 2007, Robledo graduated with a BA in Media Studies and Filmmaking at the Union Institute and University, and has become an independent filmmaker and started her own production company, Spunky Jump Productions. Marcelina is also a Trustee for the Cincinnati Arts Association. 

Jeff is a member of the Association of Fundraising Professionals, Greater Cincinnati Planned Giving Council, Partnership for Philanthropic Planning, and is on the committee for the National Philanthropy Day event. He also recently completed a seven month Planned Giving on the Run training program for planned giving professionals.

Jeff and his wife, Andrea, live in Madeira with their son Jake, where he volunteers his time as the scoutmaster for his son's Boy Scout Troop.

Margy Waller is Vice President, Arts & Culture Partnership of the Fine Arts Fund. She founded and has served as Executive Director of The Mobility Agenda, a think tank in Washington DC. Previously she was Visiting Fellow at the Brookings Institution, with a joint appointment in the Economic Studies and Metropolitan Policy programs. Prior to Brookings, she was Senior Advisor on domestic policy in the Clinton-Gore White House.

Before joining the Administration, Margy was Senior Fellow at the Progressive Policy Institute. She also served as Director of Public Policy at United Way of America, Director of Policy Development at Public/Private Ventures in Philadelphia, and congressional fellow in the office of U.S. Representative Eric Fingerhut (D-OH).

Margy was named a Top Ten Tweeter by SoapboxMedia in 2009. She was appointed by Ohio Governor Ted Strickland to the Board of Trustees of Cincinnati State Technical and Community College and serves as a member of Council 360, leading the Quality Place Priority Focus team on arts & culture. She received her BS in communication studies at Northwestern University and a law degree from The Ohio State University.

Vanessa White is Director of Community Engagement & Strategic Initiatives for the Fine Arts Fund. In her position, she is responsible for providing leadership and support to the Fine Arts Fund for external relationship building with a variety of constituencies as it works to develop and sustain mutually beneficial partnerships in the community that help to better achieve the Fine Arts Fund’s mission of strengthening the arts in the region. Vanessa also works to implement its organization-wide diversity and inclusion strategies as well as works with arts organizations to build capacity for achieving their inclusion goals. She uses her leadership, communication and strategic planning skills to accomplish her work. Vanessa also stays actively engaged in the community as a volunteer. She has served on various boards and committees to that end. As well, she has served in volunteers roles that directly impact youth and their families. She has been a mentor since 2003 and before that was a Court Appointed Special Advocate. She is an alum of Class 2 of We Lead, a women’s leadership development program of the USA Regional Chamber and AALDP, the Urban League’s leadership development program. Vanessa received  B.S form University of Cincinnati and her MBA from Xavier. She and her husband Byron live in Cincinnati’s North Avondale neighborhood with their five children.