Arts Experiences

Emily Kelson: Emily has over four years of experience in the nonprofit sector and has dedicated the majority of that time to developing her skills as a grants professional. She currently works as the grant writer for Loaves & Fishes where she manages all points of the grant proposal process. In 2022, Emily served as a grant application reviewer for the Minnesota State Arts Board during the Creative Support for Organizations grant cycle. She is excited to have been given a second opportunity to serve as a grant reviewer for the Minnesota State Arts Board?s Fiscal Year 2024 Arts Experiences grant cycle.; Betty Mackay: Mackay has served as board president of the Music Association of Minnetonka, an umbrella organization for vocal and instrumental ensembles for young people, adults, and seniors and is currently on the board of the Twin Cities Trumpet Ensemble. She is a lifelong amateur performer in orchestras, chamber ensembles, and community theater pit orchestras. She holds a BA in English from Augsburg University and a MA in English from the University of Minnesota. She has successfully applied for a Minnesota State Arts Board grant and several Metropolitan Regional Arts Council grants and has served on seven Metropolitan Regional Arts Council grant review panels.; Alec Osthoff: Osthoff received his MFA in creative writing from the University of Wyoming. He has won the Blue Mesa Review Fiction Prize, numerous fellowships and residencies, and is seeking representation for his first novel. He has served as a reader for Best of the Net, The Longleaf Review, and CLMP. He is currently the creative services coordinator at Second Harvest Heartland, the Midwest's largest food bank. He was born in Ely at a sled dog kennel, but now he lives in Minneapolis.; Annett Richter: Richter is a visual artist, photographer, performing musician, writer, teacher, concert curator, and artistic collaborator and evaluator. Her work has been supported by fellowships and grants from foundations, colleges, and arts organizations. Her visual art has been exhibited in Fargo-Moorhead, Fergus Falls, and at the Minneapolis Institute of Art (MIA). She previously served as grant program advisor for the Minnesota State Arts Board and has a continued interest in learning about the creativity by Minnesota artists who make our state a cutting edge community in the arts. Richter holds a PhD in musicology from the University of Minnesota and teaches at Concordia College in Moorhead.; Stephanie Thompson: Thompson is managing director at Ten Thousand Things (TTT), where she gets to marry her love of data with her love of great theater and inspiring artists. She is also cofounder of Soma Studios, a physical theater studio in Minneapolis. Prior to her work at TTT, she served as executive director, faculty, and company member at Dell?Arte? International (Blue Lake, CA). While in Blue Lake, she also cofounded the Blue Lake Education Foundation, the Humboldt Arts and Culture Coalition, and the Blue Lake Rising grant program. Thompson also served on the faculty of the MFA acting program at University of Missouri-Kansas City and has taught throughout the United States in the areas of mask, puppetry, commedia, clown, acting, community engagement, and entrepreneurship in the arts.