About Gabriella Calandro

Gabriella Calandro is the Director of Grants and Curatorial Affairs at the New York Foundation for the Arts, overseeing NYFA awards and grants programs and curatorial initiatives.

Throughout her career Gabriella has worked in the nonprofit arts sector in Australia and New York City holding positions in arts grant management, curatorial, marketing and museum public program development.

Gabriella is a graduate from the University of Melbourne, Australia and holds a Masters in Museum Studies.

About Ruby Lopez Harper

Ruby is the Senior Director of Local Arts Advancement for Americans for the Arts. Her portfolio includes leading field education efforts centered in equitable practice, leadership development, local arts advancement, disaster preparedness and emergency response and community building for the arts agency field, arts and culture administrators, and arts marketers. She is the chief architect of the National Arts Marketing Project Conference, leads AFTA’s Arts and Culture Leaders of Color Network and the Leadership Forum program that produces affinity-based leadership development programs. She is a 2019 Arizona State University Practices for Change Fellow and was recognized as a 2019 Inspirational Woman (Arts Advocate) by “And I Thought” Women in Literature. She is a mentor for the Arts Administrators of Color Network, serves on the steering committee for the National Coalition on Arts Preparedness and Emergency Response, serves as Chair of the Gard Foundation, serves on the board for the Arts and Humanities Council of Montgomery County (Grants Committee/Advocacy Committee) and serves on the WETA Community Advisory Council. Ruby’s work has focused on equitable access, grantmaking, supporting individual artists, community development, economic development, cultural tourism, marketing, disaster preparedness and emergency response, and public art. She draws on a varied background that includes corporate affairs, community relations, volunteerism, employee engagement, marketing and communications, and business administration. She served on the Emerging Leaders Council for Americans for the Arts (2007-2013), was the primary contact for the Arts and Economic Impact Study for Franklin County. She is a 2017 National Association of Latino Arts and Cultures Advocacy Leadership Institute Fellow, Class of 2017 American Express Leadership Academy Alum and Class of 2010 Next Generation of Leaders Fellowship program. 

About Heather Pontonio

Heather is the Senior Program Director at the Emily Hall Tremaine Foundation where she is responsible for national strategy and administration of the Art Program portfolio focused on professional practices for both artists and curators.  Heather has been instrumental in the launch of Artists Thrive, a national tool to assess and improve conditions for artists.   She serves on the Appalachia Funders Network Steering Committee and CAA’s Services to Artists Committee.  Heather has a master’s degree in Public Administration from New York University and a bachelor’s degree in Arts Administration from the State University of New York at Fredonia.