Steering Committee

Steering Committee members get to decide the direction that RALSD takes in its efforts to provide new and valuable programming and resources to its members. Becoming a member of the RALSD Steering Committee is a two-year commitment and you will be expected to lead a subcommittee and attend monthly Steering Committee meetings. You are granted a yearly professional development stipend as well as numerous opportunities to attend conferences and networking events, both in San Diego and across the U.S. The work is not always easy but the opportunity to meet and be met by some of the biggest players in the San Diego Arts Community as well as the leadership opportunities pay dividends.

CURRENT STEERING COMMITTEE

Shayla James

2020 Chair, Executive Committee

Professional Musician, Teaching Artist

Shayla James balances her time as an educator, performer, and researcher in the non-profit sector. She is a multi-instrumentalist who believes in being an advocate for arts education and programming for all ages. She is currently the owner of Sempre Music Studio, an energetic and creativity focused studio that offers high quality music education to students of all backgrounds and ages. Her work is rooted in community engagement, empowerment and collaboration across disciplines. She has worked at Villa Musica and Blindspot Collective, taught for Arts for Learning SD, and has volunteered in the Learning and Community Engagement Department at the San Diego Symphony. Also, she volunteers as a Membership Committee Board Member for YNPN San Diego. She received a Bachelor of Music degree in Piano Performance and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Coe College. She attended UC-San Diego for a Master of Arts degree in Music with an emphasis in Integrative Studies (Ethnomusicology and Critical Studies). She enjoys hiking, putting together puzzles and performing with her rock/pop band.

Kristen Mihalko

2020 Treasurer/Secretary, Executive Committee

Director of Operations, Balboa Park Cultural Partnership

Kristen Mihalko has worked in the non-profit sector for 8 years mainly in program development and coordination. As an advocate for career development and personal growth, she volunteers her time as the Treasurer for YNPN San Diego and Rising Arts Leaders San Diego. She is currently earning a certificate in Arts and Culture Leadership at the University of San Diego. Kristen is the Director of Operations for the Balboa Park Cultural Partnership and holds a Bachelor of Science Degree from the University of Hawai’i at Manoa in Family Resources with a certificate in Women’s Studies and a Master’s Degree in Strategic Communications from National University.

Katie Lorge

2020 Vice Chair Executive Committee 

Program and Marketing Manager, transcenDANCE Youth Arts Project

Katie Lorge is a Program and Marketing Manager at transcenDANCE Youth Arts Project. She is a native San Diegan and lifelong dancer. Katie graduated summa cum laude from UCSD in 2009 with a BA in Dance. After college, Katie fulfilled a longtime dream when she moved to New York to pursue a career in dance. During her two years in NYC, Katie studied and performed with a number of choreographers, and was an administrative intern with Faye Driscoll Dance Group.

After returning to San Diego in 2012, Katie helped produce the California Arts Council’s first CREATE CA Conference and continued to work with local choreographers as both a performer and curator, showing dance works at Space 4 Art, youTurn, and the Without Walls Festival. Katie likes to think of herself as a storyteller and sees language, images, movement, and media as opportunities to connect and engage with other people. She has previously worked in Development and Marketing with Mainly Mozart, the San Diego Armed Services YMCA, A Reason To Survive (ARTS), and BOOST Collaborative.

Zaquia Salinas

2020 Artist Advocacy Co-Chair

Professional Dancer, Teaching Artist

Director, DISCO RIOT

Zaquia Mahler Salinas, a native San Diegan, is a performer, dance maker, and teacher. After receiving her BA in Dance with Honors from UC Santa Barbara in 2011, she returned to San Diego and danced for Jean Isaacs’ San Diego Dance Theater from 2012-2018. In 2017 she obtained her MFA in Dance: Creative Practice from Saint Mary’s College of California where she focused on artistic development and dance as a platform for social justice. She is currently serving as dance faculty at San Diego City College and the Coronado School for Creative and Performing Arts. As a choreographer, Zaquia has presented dance works throughout California, Texas, Peru and Mexico. She is excited about her most recent undertaking, the creation of the nonprofit movement-based arts organization called DISCO RIOT. This is her first year as a member of the Rising Arts Leaders Steering Committee.

Wendy Gracia

2020 Artist Advocacy Co-Chair

Fine Artist, Museum Worker

Wendy Gracia is an oil painter based in San Diego. She received her BFA in 2018 from Laguna College of Art + Design, having majored in Drawing + Painting. She has spent the last two years working in the arts in San Diego, first as a Gallery Attendant at Wonderspaces, and later with Visitor Experience in Balboa Park. Currently, Wendy is showing some of her paintings in Barrio Logan, and has plans to show more of her work in galleries throughout Southern California. This will be her first year serving on the committee for the Rising Arts Leaders.

Yvette Roman

2020 Artist Advocacy Co-Chair

Art Coordinator, La Maestra

Yvette Roman is a bi-national artist, curator and arts educator. She holds a B.A., from UCSD in Visual Arts and Cultural Anthropology.  Yvette is passionate about making art accessible through community-organized collaboration.  Her artwork is an exploration of simplicity and chaos. Disciplines include photography, painting, and collage. Her artwork weaves memories of loss, self-discovery, and personal insecurities. Her artwork has been exhibited in the US, Mexico and Egypt.

Most recently Yvette was selected by the Mint House Project to create a public mural on the topic of immigration, titled “Haciendo Linea”. Her series, “Fragments”, was displayed through Hanalei Artwork in San Diego, and at Alternate Roots in North Carolina.

Yvette is the Art Coordinator at La Maestra- Generations Center for Youth Advancement. She is an Artist Advocate for RALSD- Rising Arts Leaders in San Diego, a Curator at Amigos del Rep, and a member of the Core Team for the SDAC- San Diego Arts Community. From 2018-2019 she was the Vice President of Art Unites.

Carolyn Osorio

2020 Communications Co-Chair

Curator, Mint House Project

Carolyn Osorio has a BFA in Theory, Criticism, and History of Art and Design from Pratt Institute in Brooklyn and has worked in communications and community building for a variety of arts and culture organizations in both New York and San Diego. She currently works as a digital engagement and marketing consultant for San Diego nonprofits and writes for The Coronado Times. She is an artist, muralist, and curator who runs a public art project in Barrio Logan, the Mint House Project, which presents local artists responding to themes of social justice ranging from immigration to equality to LGBTQ+ pride. She is passionate about advocating for and creating platforms and spaces that give a voice to those who are (too often) ignored and/or discounted.

Kathryn Caudle

2020 Communications Co-Chair

Digital Artist, Scratchkatshots Photography 

With a background in photography for the past ten years, Kathryn Caudle utilizes her business to support various arts organizations and local businesses to help build their branding. After moving from Hawaii to San Diego six years ago, she has worked various jobs that ultimately inspired her to start her own business, Scratchkatshots Photography. She currently specializes in commercial photography as well as creative collaboration with a variety of genres and subjects. She also has experience in the sales and marketing field and continues to fuse her skills as a digital artist and small business owner to progress the arts community here in San Diego. This is her first year on the communications committee for RALSD and she is passionate about continuing her support for all artists and the programs that elevate their development. 

Leah Firebaugh

2020 Membership Co-Chair

Content Marketing Specialist , San Diego Theaters

She/Her

With a lifelong passion for the arts, Leah Firebaugh has dedicated her personal and professional time to working with leading arts organizations. An East-Coast native, Leah is excited to call San Diego home and is thrilled to be a part of this vibrant community. In her current role, Leah is the Content Marketing Specialist for San Diego Theatres, the nonprofit organization that manages the San Diego Civic Theatre and historic Balboa Theatre. Leah is a member of Young Nonprofit Professionals Network San Diego, San Diego Leadership Alliance, and serves on the Steering Committee of Rising Arts Leaders San Diego. In her free time, Leah can be found playing the piano and ukulele, practicing Spanish, visiting a museum, cooking, and hiking San Diego’s beautiful scenery.

Camille McPherson

2020 Programming Co-Chair

Dancer, San Diego Ballet

In her eighth season with the San Diego Ballet,  she has been featured in leading and soloist roles in the company’s diverse array of repertoire. Her performances have earned her press features in the San Diego Union Tribune, Jazz Blues News and the San Diego Reader as well as television features on KUSI and PBS. Prior to joining the San Diego Ballet, Camille danced in professional productions with Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre as a member of the company’s prestigious Graduate Program and with California Ballet as an Apprentice. Camille teaches extensively throughout San Diego and has served as a Ballet Exam Juror at the San Diego School for Creative and Performing Arts. In addition to performing and teaching, Camille enjoys working in arts administration, serving as San Diego Ballet’s Educational Outreach Coordinator and Summer Intensive Administrative Director. Camille is excited to be in her first year as RALSD Programming Committee Co-Chair.

Elizabeth Tobias

2020 Programming Co-Chair

Elizabeth Tobias, MA, is an Expressive Arts Therapist, Artist, Educator and Community Organizer. Elizabeth draws upon multiple art disciplines to create socially engaged immersive installations. As a facilitator and educator, she works with schools, museums and non-profits to create customized expressive arts programs, performances, workshops and events. 

Elizabeth currently serves on the steering committee of Rising Arts Leaders, San Diego as well as The Arts+Culture San Diego Community Advisory Council. She is the recipient of numerous awards and has exhibited her films and work at museums and galleries throughout the world including Harvard University, Utah MOCA and Ping-Pong at Art Basel.  She received her MA in Psychology from USM and her Professional Diploma from The Expressive Arts Institute. 

In 2019, Tobias received awards for her short documentary, “Survivor! 98 Second Stories, an advocacy project bringing awareness to the sexual assault epidemic. In 2014, she was awarded a Learning Innovation Fellowship from The National Science Foundation as part of a collaborative project to combine art and science to combat climate change. In 2012, she earned a Durfee ARC Grant for The Cupcake Project, a traveling exhibit about the hunger epidemic in America. 

She has worked with organizations including Vista Hill Parent Care, The San Diego Unified School District Department of Student Advocacy, La Jolla Elementary School, La Jolla High School, The Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center, The Expressive Arts Foundation and Arts for Learning.

Emeritus Steering Committee Members