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Meet the People of UMMA

This is UMMA — a passionate group of individuals who believe that art is a fundamental human right. We are a collective and a culture. A collective driven by the importance of accessible art in our communities. A culture sustained and strengthened by respecting everyone’s voice and contribution.

Director’s
Office

734.763.9954
olsenc@umich.edu
You can usually find me... in storage, exclaiming over new acquisitions!

Christina Olsen

Director, University of Michigan Museum of Art
(she/her)
a woman poses for a portrait
734.763.9954
fikes@umich.edu
When not at UMMA I love going for long walks with my husband and our dogs, connecting with my family, reading, baking and enjoying a great meal with good friends!

Sandy Fike

Executive Assistant to the Director
734.615.2827
alisunnj@umich.edu
Outside of UMMA... I like playing with my kids, working on home renovation and design projects, and going to the farmer's market on Saturdays.

Alisunn Jones

Manager of Special Projects & Strategic Implementation
(she/her/hers)

Collections
& Registration

My fondest memory from working at the museum is the Student Appreciation event. It really helped me come closer to my co-workers and establish a deeper connection to the workplace community.

Cal

Student Art Handler
734.764.1178
ccgross@umich.edu
You can usually find me... in collection storage admiring my favorite pieces of art.

Corey Gross

Chief Registrar
(he/him/his)
qianhe@umich.edu
For conservation requests, please reach out to my colleague Katie Prichard

Qian He

Asian Art Conservator

Hunter

Student Art Handler
734.647.0527
katprich@umich.edu
My fondest memory at UMMA is... unpacking and cataloguing my favorite artwork in the collection, 'Journey Without Maps VIII' by David Budd.

Katie Prichard

Associate Registrar
(she/her)
734.764.8873
katstadt@umich.edu
You can usually find me... cataloging the collection and updating the database.

Katie Stadtmiller

Registration Associate
(she/her)

Curatorial
Affairs

jrcarty@umich.edu

Jenny Carty

Curator of Art in Public Spaces
734.647.0526
ldbecker@umich.edu
You can usually find me... needlepointing during meetings

Laura De Becker

Chief Curator Helmut and Candis Stern Curator of African Art
(she/her)
734.764.2426
jfriess@umich.edu
You can usually find me... debating between a small and large coffee at the UMMA Cafe.

Jennifer M. Friess

Associate Director of Curatorial Affairs Associate Curator of Photography
(she/her)
You can usually find me in the Curatorial Research Center with a cold brew in hand (carefully sealed, of course).

Russell

Curatorial Student Intern
(he/him)
When I'm not working on museum projects, I enjoy working out and volunteering around Ann Arbor. I am also a Ph.D. student in the History of Art department and one of my favorite things to do is to take my students to visit UMMA.

Róisín

Curatorial Student Intern
(she/her)
734.763.0804
avmiller@umich.edu
Outside of UMMA... I like to run around the playground with my son and seek out any bit of nature I can find.

Ashley Miller

Assistant Curator of African Art
(she/her)
734.647.0523
onatsu@umich.edu
You can usually find me... looking at an art work in study rooms or galleries.

Natsu Oyobe, PhD

Curator of Asian Art
734.764.3894
erindahl@umich.edu
My fondest memory at UMMA is...the fall 2023 opening weekend - it was amazing to see the museum buzzing with excitement, and for all of the hard work and ideas to come to fruition!

Emily Rindahl

Administrative Assistant to the Artistic Program
(she/her)
Outside of UMMA, I like to dance! I am a ballerina.

Sophie

Curatorial Student Intern
(she/her)
robinkwi@umich.edu
The art movement that best matches my personal vibe is 1970s New York — raw, conceptual, spiritual; great jeans and taste in music.

Robin K. Williams

Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art
(she/her)

Development

734.647.2064
meaclark@umich.edu
Outside of UMMA... I love going on adventures with my family, traveling, enjoying Michigan summers, reading, making pottery, and exploring other museums.

Meaghan Clark

Assistant Director of Development, Annual Giving & Events
(she/her)
734.764.1983
jemcc@umich.edu
My fondest memory at UMMA...was being a part of all the reopening festivities when the Frankel wing was completed. It was amazing to see all the excitement as visitors experienced it for the first time.

Jenna Morgan

Stewardship Manager
(she/her)
734.647.3132
syrichar@umich.edu
You can usually find me... grabbing an iced latte at the UMMA Café!

Sydney Richards

Associate Director of Development, Individual Giving
(she/her)
734.647.0516
asamps@umich.edu
You can usually find me... talking with curators about their ideas for new exhibitions.

Anna Sampson

Director of Development, Institutional Giving & Campaign Strategy
(she/her)
734.353.9208
lizseger@umich.edu

Liz Seger

Chief Development Officer
(she/her)

Exhibitions
& Publications

734.764.8319
mdcasad@umich.edu

Matt Casadonte

Senior Exhibitions Technician
734.936.0163
andco@umich.edu
You can usually find me... poring over spreadsheets and, on the best days, seeing an exhibition or a project get installed. In my free time at the museum I love to wander the galleries – you can always find you haven't noticed before..

Andrew Cohen

Exhibitions & Programs Project Manager
(he/him)
734.615.8186
kaweiss@umich.edu
"We cannot direct the wind, but we can adjust the sails." -Dolly Parton

Katie Derosier

Director of Exhibitions & Publications
(she/her)
734.763.8453
alexanea@umich.edu
You can usually find me... helping prepare artwork for display in the museum's collections rooms and doing a variety of tasks to prep for upcoming exhibitions.

Alexandra Eason

Assistant Exhibitions Technician
(she/her)
734.764.8012
kholoka@umich.edu
You can usually find me... installing art in the galleries.

Kate Holoka

Senior Exhibitions Technician
(she/her)
734.615.2796
savah@umich.edu
You can usually find me... deep in thought playing around with ideas for engaging exhibition graphics.

Savanna Hudson

Exhibitions Graphic Designer
(she/her)
734.615.7754
elarso@umich.edu
You can usually find me... popping into curators' offices to check on exhibition progress.

Erika Larson

Senior Manager, Exhibitions & Publications
(she/her)

Finance
& Operations

734.647.0985
efarrel@umich.edu
Outside of UMMA... I like to read, write, watch movies, & listen to/play music! And maybe a little splash of video games...

Ethan Farrelly

Financial Specialist
(he/him)
734.647.0518
terrig@umich.edu
My fondest memory at UMMA is... just before reopening the building after construction I went out the back door of the elevator into the galleries and saw the Aspara Warrior. It took my breath away.

Terri L. Gable

Associate Director of Finance & Administration
(she/her)
Outside of UMMA, I play rugby! I am currently on the UM Women's team and we have won two national championships.

Ella

Student Event Host
(she/they)
734.764.4596
jmorehe@umich.edu
Outside of UMMA... I like to spend time with my family and pets, host book club, and go on silly friend dates.

Jenna Morehead

Event and Facilities Manager
(she/her)
734.647.0521
hnickel@umich.edu
You can usually find... me in the shop, merchandising and working with my wonderful staff of Shop Sales Reps and Visitor's Services Navigators.

Hayden Nickel

Retail Operations Assistant Manager
(they/them)
734.763.7198
patanash@umich.edu
The art piece that best matches my vibe is... Caravaggio's Judith & Holofernes, it's a story of a woman who was underestimated. The artist was also underestimated.

Patricia Scott

Director of Finance & Administration
(she/her)
734.763.9051
nvanh@umich.edu
You can usually find me... unboxing new product arrivals in the UMMA Shop!

Neil A. Van Houten

Retail Operations Manager
(he/him)
Fictional characters that might best represent me are both Dipper and Mabel Pines from 'Gravity Falls'. Dipper, like me, is curious, loves learning, and can be very type-A. Like Mabel, I love sweaters and can be more relaxed and fun around people I feel close to.

Kaitlyn

Student Event Host
(she/her)

Marketing
& Public Relations

734.647.0524
ankney@umich.edu

Christopher Ankney

Director of Marketing and Public Relations
(he/him)
bickelk@umich.edu
If I was a dessert, I would like to be a Madeleine, their recipe is timeless and true - plus they look so cool!

Kate Bickel

Marketing Project Assistant
(she/her)

Victor

Student Content Creator
(he/him)
What is your most niche personal interest: I've been collecting basketball sneakers for eight years -- at this point, my closet looks like the backrooms at Footlocker!

Katherine

Marketing Student Intern
(she/her)
810.835.7710
nkagerer@umich.edu
You can usually find me...walking around the museum talking with guests, getting inspiration, or taking photo and video for social media... follow us @ummamuseum :)

Neil Kagerer

Community Marketing & Social Media Specialist
(he/him)
734.647.0517
moatru@umich.edu
Outside of UMMA I like... being out on a hike taking pictures of every single flower, mushroom, or bug I see.

Molly Trudeau

Web Content Specialist
(she/her)

Museum
Technology

773.987.6527
shayla@umich.edu
You can usually find me... in the basement working on bug fixes.

Shayla Johnson

Web Applications Developer
734.763.0256
jmturner@umich.edu
You can usually find me... quietly helping other staff so they can make a positive impact on our visitors.

John Turner

Director of Museum Technology
(he/him)

Public Experience
& Learning

734.615.9815
lherbert@umich.edu

Lisa Herbert Borgsdorf

Associate Director for Public Experience & Learning
(she/her)
734.615.8181
dchoberk@umich.edu
You can usually find me... talking about art.

David Choberka

Mellon Foundation Curator for University Learning and Programs
(he/him)
734.846.6108
briannon@umich.edu
You can usually find me... hanging out with UMMA's Student Advisory Board members, devising awesome student programming, introducing them to the wonderful world of museum work, and being a hype-woman for their creative social media endeavors.

Briannon Cierpilowski

Manager of Student Programs

Mahalina Dimacali

Program Coordinator
(she/they/siya)
You can usually find me talking about art with University of Michigan classes that are visiting the museum.

Tyler Dunston

Public Engagement and University Learning Intern
734.936.3461
iengel@umich.edu
You can usually find me... laughing somewhere in the galleries

Isabel Engel

University Learning and Programs Specialist
(she/her)
felixzg@umich.edu

Felix Zamora Gomez

Irving Stenn, Jr. Fellow in Public Humanities & Museum Pedagogy
You can usually find me leading learning engagements for different university classes or doing collections research on UMMA's medieval and early modern objects (lots of looking at art, object files, old books, and googling!)

Julia LaPlaca

Irving Stenn Jr. Fellow in Public Humanities and Museum Pedagogy
kafi@umich.edu

Kafi Laramore

K-12 Teaching & Learning Coordinator
734.678.0903
jleija@umich.edu
You can usually find me... with the PEL team strategizing about upcoming events and other activities in the museum.

James P. Leija

Deputy Director for Public Experience and Learning
(he/they)
Kasey Rosatti is in her 4th and final year of undergraduate studies, majoring in Public Policy with a focus area in International Law and Diplomatic Policy. Kasey has been working with UMMA for almost 2 years and is proud of the work she’s done on everything from the Vote Project to co-leading the SAB!

Kasey

Student Program Assistant & Navigator
2024 SAB Member
Annie is a Junior studying Biopsychology, Cognition, and Neuroscience with a minor in Gender and Health. She is an avid lover of the arts from music to theater, to film.

Annie

Student Program Assistant & Navigator
2024 SAB Member

Sj

Student Exhibition Interpreter
734.615.6247
mdegroo@umich.edu
You can usually find me... in the galleries with a group of young students and teachers.

Grace VanderVliet

Curator for Museum Teaching and Learning
(she/her)

Visitor Services and Retail

You can usually find me greeting people with a smile at the front desk or in the UMMA shop!

Lexie

UMMA Student Navigator & Shop Clerk
(she/her)

Aine

UMMA Student Navigator
(she/her)
Outside of work at UMMA... I love to create art of my own! I crochet and knit, sew, paint, sketch, and dance. I also love the research I do on Bipolar Disorder in the EmoTe lab on campus, and enjoy spending time with my friends and my sweet cat, Lola!

Lillie

UMMA Student Navigator
(she/they)

Cameron

UMMA Student Navigator
(he/him)

Sai

UMMA Student Navigator
(she/her)
My fondest memory from working at the museum is when I met Janie Paul and got to speak to her about what she is doing in STAMPS for the Prison Creatives Arts Project. It was very inspiring.

Leah

UMMA Student Navigator
(she/her)

Sophie

UMMA Student Navigator
(she/her)

Alexander

UMMA Student Navigator
(he/they)
You can usually find me... helping guests out, whether in the shop or the front desk.

Amarilis

UMMA Student Navigator & Shop Clerk
(she/her)
Annie is a Junior studying Biopsychology, Cognition, and Neuroscience with a minor in Gender and Health. She is an avid lover of the arts from music to theater, to film.

Annie

Student Program Assistant & Navigator
2024 SAB Member
Kasey Rosatti is in her 4th and final year of undergraduate studies, majoring in Public Policy with a focus area in International Law and Diplomatic Policy. Kasey has been working with UMMA for almost 2 years and is proud of the work she’s done on everything from the Vote Project to co-leading the SAB!

Kasey

Student Program Assistant & Navigator
2024 SAB Member
If I was a dessert, I think I would be Baklava! Sweet, nutty, and a bit messy.

Nikki

UMMA Student Navigator & Shop Clerk
(she/her)
CHamoru undergraduate student focusing on the archaeological study of Oceania.

Carly

UMMA Student Navigator
(she/her)

Daja

UMMA Student Navigator & Shop Clerk
(she/her)
My favorite piece of art in the museum would have to be Nevelson's "Dark Presence III". You can't quite tell what each piece of the wooden set is, but the collection of found objects together creates a grand dark presence.

Jerry

UMMA Student Navigator
(he/him)

Logan

UMMA Student Navigator
(he/him)

UMMA Leadership Board

The UMMA Leadership Board (ULB) is a volunteer advisory board created and supported by UMMA to provide strategic guidance on issues of advocacy and fundraising for the Museum.

Meet the ULB

Student Advisory Board

The Student Advisory Board (SAB) is dedicated to creating a culturally inclusive community through programmatic efforts, and amplifying student voices to shape the museum.

Meet the SAB