Building institutions that make the arts belong to everyone.

Jackie Coleman is a nonprofit executive with 20+ years of experience leading, founding, and rebuilding organizations, from a $9 million capital campaign to a citywide arts-education initiative built from the ground up.

"I don't lead from the front of the room. I lead from the middle of the vision we built together."

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About

My Path

For more than two decades, I've built organizations that put the arts within reach of the people who need them most.

My path started at Hartford Stage in 2003. From there, I moved into Hartford Public Schools, where I took a recommendation from a superintendent's task force and built it into something lasting: Hartford Performs, an independent public-private nonprofit now serving Hartford Public Schools. I went on to the Connecticut State Department of Education, then to the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving, where I directed millions of dollars in community investment grantmaking each year toward equity-focused programs.

Most recently, I served as Executive Director of Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts in Annapolis, where I led a $9M capital campaign, grew the staff from 9 to 26, relaunched the organization's public identity through the "Hall is Home" rebrand, and helped pass state legislation to secure a liquor license critical to the venue's sustainability.

What Drives My Work

Across every role, the throughline has been the same: expanding access, building institutions that can outlast any one leader, and finding the cross-sector partnerships that make ambitious work possible.

  • Kindness

    As a baseline, not a soft add-on to "real" leadership

  • Connection

    Across sectors, disciplines, and the different rooms an executive has to be in

  • Creativity

    The same instinct that drew me to the arts, applied to organizational problems

  • Excellence

    A high bar, held consistently, not just when it's convenient

  • Growth

    My own included; I don't ask staff or boards to stretch in ways I'm not also willing to

How I Work

I lead democratically,
not by decree.

I believe the best decisions are made in the open, tested by critical thought partners rather than rubber-stamped for consensus. I seek out people who will push back on my thinking, because an organization is stronger when its leader is the best listener in the room, not the loudest voice.

At the same time,
I lead transformationally.

Democratic process doesn’t mean an absence of direction. I bring a shared vision to the table, built with staff, board, and community rather than handed down, and I hold it steady while the day-to-day decisions around it stay genuinely collaborative.

I build institutions
people can trust.

Much of my career has been about access: making sure arts and culture aren’t gated behind privilege, and that the organizations delivering them are sturdy enough to keep that promise. Whether founding or rebuilding, my instinct is the same: get the architecture right so the mission outlasts any one leader.

Testimonials

  • “Jackie Coleman is a leader in the not-for-profit arts community. Her decades of experience across a range of organizations facilitates her ability to deftly navigate the complexities of outreach, mission-impact articulation, donor engagement and advancement with a keen sense of political realities when engaging local and state elected leaders. She has a proven record of innovative ideas and management approaches creating the environment for the adoption of change with a clear mandate to facilitate the greater good.”

    Jeff Harris, Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts Board of Directors


  • "Jackie is a visionary leader who can galvanize a community and supporters behind her vision. She sees opportunities for collaborative efforts to expand the reach of the arts and education. She effortlessly garners financial backing because of the strength of her commitment and her ideas. Jackie is a community presence. She brings change when it is needed and does not shrink from some of the difficult efforts that go along with it. She is a servant leader to an institution and truly committed to the public good."

    Nora Demleitner, Executive Director at the Ben & Myrna Cardin Center for Civic Engagement and Civil Discourse (at Towson University) and President, St. John's College, Annapolis (2022-25)

  • "Jackie is a passionate and dedicated leader in the worlds of art and education — and especially in the intersection where the two meet. She is a big thinker with a gift for storytelling that enables her to inspire and gather others behind a shared vision."

    Jennifer Roberts Director of Education, Hartford Stage


  • "I reengaged with Maryland Hall as a corporate sponsor and individual patron solely because of Jackie’s vision for the organization. With her at the helm, programming expanded and improved, the organization thrived financially, and rebuilt relationships within the community. Jackie was a driving force in revitalizing Maryland Hall, putting in place sound management coupled with artistic vision. It is a rare leader who can do both. "

    Ann Covington - President of Covington Alsina


Work History

Leading arts and education organizations through change

I'm a nonprofit executive with 20+ years of experience leading arts, education, and community-impact organizations through growth, transition, and recovery. I raise philanthropic and public funding, build cross-sector partnerships, and focus on equity, access, and lasting organizational health.

$9 million

raised for a building capital campaign

9 to 26 staff

as I rebuilt an organization after COVID

$2.94 million

in annual arts and K–12 grantmaking overseen

Education

BFA, Theatre

University of Connecticut, magna cum laude

MFA, Theatre

University of South Carolina

2022 – 2026

Executive Director

Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts

Led 26 staff and rebuilt the organization after COVID. Raised $9 million for a capital campaign and launched the Hall is Home campaign to reconnect four resident companies.

2016 – 2021

Senior Community Impact Officer

Hartford Foundation for Public Giving

Guided arts and K–12 education grantmaking. Created Artists of Color Unite to widen funding access for BIPOC artists.

2015 – 2016

Education Consultant for the Arts

Connecticut State Department of Education

Provided statewide leadership across dance, music, theatre, and visual and media arts, and built a statewide advocacy network.

2009 – 2014

Senior Executive Advisor for the Arts and Founding Executive Director, Hartford Performs

Hartford Public Schools

Founded Hartford Performs, a public-private nonprofit, to carry out the Superintendent's Task Force on the Arts recommendations.

2003 – 2009

Director of Education

Hartford Stage

Built and led the education department of a major regional theatre.

Download Resume

What I’m Looking For

I'm seeking my next leadership role, one where I can put two decades of experience building, rebuilding, and scaling mission-driven organizations to work. I'm drawn to opportunities in the arts, education, or nonprofit sector where real impact is possible: where an organization is ready to grow, a community needs stronger access to opportunity, or a team needs a leader who can turn vision into results.

If that sounds like your organization, I'd love to talk.

Contact Me