Navigating Your Board through Anxious Times

Dave Lawrence is the President & CEO of the Cultural Council of Palm Beach County serving as the chief arts advocate for the arts and cultural community. His work includes the development of grants and initiatives for arts and cultural organizations and professional artists, cultural tourism, organizational development, marketing, advocacy and arts policy development, strategic planning, and public art. His latest effort is the creation of the new Artist Innovation Fellowship program for creative professionals throughout Palm Beach County. Prior to his appointment at the Cultural Council, he was the President & CEO of the Arts Council of Indianapolis. He conceived, created and launched Indianapolis’ citywide murals program, 46 for XLVI, which received national and international acclaim and for which he received Indianapolis’ NUVO Cultural Vision Award. Dave created innovative arts infusion strategies for major sporting events such as the 2005 US World Swimming Trials, the 2015 NCAA Men’s Final Four and the 100th Running of the Indianapolis 500. Dave was a member of the Host Committee Co-Chair for Cultural & Arts Programs for Super Bowl XLVI. In August of 2018, Dave was named a Sagamore of the Wabash by Governor Eric Holcomb, one of Indiana’s highest honors. This past January, Dave was honored for his work in Palm Beach County by Art Synergy with the Vision 2020 Award. Dave received a B.A. in communication from DePauw University.

Karen Gahl-Mills facilitates learning to drive systems change.  She is a Visiting Clinical Associate Professor at the O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs at Indiana University, the Senior Advisor to the Center for Cultural Affairs at the O’Neill School, and a lecturer at Harris Public Policy at the University of Chicago. She came to teaching after a career as a public and non-profit sector leader, including CEO roles at Cuyahoga Arts & Culture, a large grantmaking organization in Cleveland, Ohio, the Syracuse Symphony Orchestra in upstate New York, and the Westchester Philharmonic in suburban New York City.  She applies practical lessons from her distinguished career to teaching courses in nonprofit governance, leadership, strategy, fundraising and public policy. 

She serves on the board of the Old Town School of Folk Music, the campaign cabinet for Lutheran Metropolitan Ministries Breaking New Ground campaign, and she has been a volunteer consultant for the Civic Consulting Alliance.  She holds a Bachelor of Music degree from DePaul University and an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.   She lives in Chicago’s Old Town neighborhood with her husband.