The Cultural Connections board is made up of museum professionals in both the non‐profit and for‐profit sectors. Board members plan activities, identify opportunities to collaborate with other organizations, and represent Cultural Connections in the museum, informal education, and arts and culture communities. Cultural Connections is a non‐profit organization, and board members serve on a volunteer basis.

Executive Committee

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  Tamara Schwarz, President

  Tamara Schwarz is the Senior Manager of Experience Design at Chabot Space & Science Center. She leads all aspects of design and development of Chabot’s major visitor experiences and other public spaces, including permanent and temporary/traveling exhibitions, programming in the planetarium, large-screen theater, and observatories, and digital media for online learning. She has more than a decade of experience developing exhibitions, multimedia, and web projects on a variety of science and historical topics. Tamara joined the Cultural Connections board in 2008.

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  Stacy Gohman, Vice President

  Stacy joined the Cultural Connections board in 2011. She started as the Outreach Specialist at the NASA Ames Outreach Office in June, 2011. She previously worked in both the exhibitions and education departments at the Children’s Discovery Museum of San Jose and taught Chemistry at Eagan High School in Eagan, Minnesota. Stacy has a certificate in Museum Studies from John F. Kennedy University and a Master’s degree in Geology from the University of Minnesota.

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    Cat Aboudara, Treasurer

    Cathleen (Cat) is the former Special Projects Manager at California Academy of Sciences and worked in the public programs division. She is best known for crafting the programming for NightLife for adult audiences. Before working at the Academy, Cat got her start as an intern at Lindsay Wildlife Museum for four years and worked with animals ranging from snakes and hawks to foxes and bobcats. She has a deep curiosity about the natural world and evolutionary biology and loves crafting events that engage life-long learning and awe of natural world as well as science and technology within a mainstream audience.

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    Sherri Nevins, Secretary

    Sherri earned her M.A. at San Francisco State University in Exhibition Development and Design. Her passion for storytelling and creating meaningful visitor experiences was a driving force behind her award-winning work in interpretive media at Antenna Audio where she produced multi-media tours for art and cultural sites throughout the country. Currently, Sherri freelances as a creative consultant, producer and writer while taking care of her young daughter and aging yet spry dog. She joined Cultural Connections in 2010 and facilities the organization’s social media campaign while serving on the Communication Committee.

  Programs Committee

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    Barbara Berry

    Barbara Berry is an independent museum educator. She has a certificate in Museum Studies from John F. Kennedy University and a Masters of Arts in Educational Technology from San Francisco State University. After designing and developing educational programs in the corporate arena, Barbara transitioned that experience into the museum and non-profit world. She was worked on projects with the de Young Museum, the California Academy of Sciences, the California State Capitol Museum, and the American Society of Landscape Architects.

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    Caren Gutierrez

    Caren Gutierrez is the School Programs Coordinator at the Asian Art Museum, where she works with K-12 educators and museum volunteers to design collection-based school programs, resources, and professional development. She earned her Master of Arts in Art History from UC Davis, and her Master of Arts in Education and teaching credentials from San Diego State University. In addition, she is currently designing and teaching a course in Museum Literacy for the Academy of Art University’s Art Education graduate program.

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    Holly Herndon

    Holly Herndon is the Exhibits Manager at Zeum, where she overseas the development and maintenance of interactive children’s exhibits fostering creativity. She received her Masters in Electronic Music and Recording Media from Mills College and is an active computer music composer/performer. Before moving to the Bay Area, she was a practicing artist in Berlin, Germany, where she also worked as a project manager in interactive media. In both her art and museum practice, she seeks to find natural human engagement with technology.

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      Rae Holzman

      Rae’s career in the arts began as a self-employed fabric artist that created character portrait dolls made from scavenged materials. This led her to working with non-profits such as the East Bay Depot for Creative ReUse and MOCHA where materials inspire creativity.

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      Saly Lee

      Saly Lee, Arts Program Coordinator for the Asian Art Museum, oversees the AsiaAlive program which consists of artist demonstrations and hands-on art programs for the general public. She holds an MFA in Fine Art and an MA in Arts Administration, and has studied Multi-cultural education in informal settings. A native Korean speaker, she has been working in museum education for six years.

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      Megan McSweeney

      Megan is an exhibit developer at West Office Exhibition Design, where she specializes in developing content for science centers. She has a Masters in Biomedical Sciences from the University of California San Francisco and is passionate about using her background to contribute to science education. Before moving to the Bay Area, she worked as a program presenter at the Museum of Science in Boston.

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      Margaret Middleton

      Margaret Middleton is the exhibit designer at the Children’s Discovery Museum of San Jose. A craftsperson, artist, and museum geek, she has a passion for designing and creating beautiful, functional spaces, unique props, and imaginative costumes.

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      Tyler Sterkel

      Tyler Sterkel is the co-founder and CEO of MondoWindow, the first-ever online, location-aware, in-flight entertainment platform for air travelers. MondoWindow is a web-based, interactive map that interprets the landscape below the user’s airplane. He has produced websites and interactive media for major museums such as the Smithsonian and the deYoung. He’s worked as a museum Curator, and a Localization Project Manager for Macromedia, Zone Labs, and other software firms and translation agencies. Tyler holds a B.S. in German from Georgetown University and a M.A. in Public Archaeology from University College London.

      Communications Committee

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        Mandy Smith

        Mandy Smith joined the Cultural Connections Board in 2008 and has served on the Programs Committee and Communications Committees as well as served as the President of the Board. She has dedicated her career to education and interpretation in museums through volunteer work and professional experience. Mandy served as an Account Manger at Antenna Audio and is currently the Director of Museum Partnerships at Art.com. Mandy holds a Bachelor of Arts in Art History and a Master of Arts in Museum Studies from John F. Kennedy University.

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        Carol Tang

        Carol is Director of the Coalition for Science After School, a national network of science educators headquartered at the Lawrence Hall of Science. She is a member of the 2012 AAM Program Committee and the CAM Leaders of the Future working group. She previously was Senior Science Educator and Director of Visitor Interpretive Programs at the California Academy of Sciences where she oversaw exhibition development and museum programming for the 2008 reopening. She was a paleontology professor before discovering her passion for museum education.