The Massachusetts Cultural Council Board

The MCC is governed by a board of private citizens appointed by the Governor for staggered three-year terms. Board members represent various regions of the state and have demonstrated distinguished service, creativity and/or scholarship in the arts, humanities or interpretive sciences.

Sheila Balboni, Lawrence
Ricardo Barreto, Boston, Ex Officio
Elyse D. Cherry, Brookline, Chair
Ronald L. Feldman, West Stockbridge
Walter "Sandy" Fraze, Jr., Fall River
Barbara W. Grossman, Newton, Vice-Chair
J. Elizabeth "Liz" Harris, Boston
Frances F. Jacobson, Westborough
Ira S. Lapidus, Williamstown
Wyndham R.H. Lewis, Boston
Jeanne Pinado, Boston
Malcolm L. Sherman, Wellesley
David Starr, Springfield
Frederick C. Tillis, Amherst
Frederick J. Tirrell, Barnstable
Rosamond B. Vaule, Brookline
Carmen D. "Dolly" Vazquez, Worcester

Sheila Balboni is the executive director of a non-profit agency, The Community Group Inc. with offices in the North Shore, Merrimack Valley. The agency provides management services to programs related to early learning and child care, adult training and professional development and an elementary charter school. The agency also provides consultation in the area of data collection and analysis to public schools. She holds a masters degree from the Harvard School of Education.

Ricardo Barreto has been the director of the UrbanArts Institute at Mass. College of Art & Design since 2000. Prior to that, he spent six years as a program coordinator at the MCC and two years as program coordinator for the Central Artery/Tunnel Project Arts Program, where he was in charge of all temporary art projects. With degrees in art history (BA and MA) from Oberlin College, Mr. Barreto has a long track record of managing art projects such as Agnes Denes’s Wheatfield built on two acres of landfill for the World Trade Center in Manhattan, and as a curator of many shows in the United States, Mexico and Europe. He has also been a board member of Mass Humanities (2001-2008) and a member of the Public Art Network Committee (2002-2008), a national program of Americans for the Arts.

Elyse D. Cherry, Chair of the MCC, is chief executive officer of Boston Community Capital, a community development financial institution whose mission is to create and preserve healthy communities where low-income people live and work, and president of Boston Community Venture Fund, an affiliate of Boston Community Capital. Ms. Cherry is an attorney and a former partner of Hale & Dorr. She has chaired the board of directors of the Opportunity Finance Network, MassEquality and The Center for New Words, and serves on executive boards of the Global Leadership Institute and Wall Street Without Walls. Cherry is a graduate of Wellesley College and Northeastern University School of Law.

Ronald L. Feldman, cellist and conductor, is artist in residence in orchestral/ instrumental music as well as conductor of the Berkshire Symphony at Williams College. He joined the Boston Symphony Orchestra’s cello section in 1967 at the age of 19 and recently retired to assume his current duties. Formerly music director and conductor of the Worcester Symphony Orchestra and of the Boston new music ensemble Extension Works, Mr. Feldman was also music director and conductor of the New England Philharmonic for five seasons. Mr. Feldman has received critical acclaim for a wide variety of musical achievements. In 1991 he and the Berkshire Symphony were awarded the American Symphony Orchestra League’s ASCAP Award.

Walter "Sandy" Fraze, Jr., Chairman of the MCC Grants Committee, is a practicing lawyer in Fall River. Mr. Fraze was past Chairman of the Massachusetts Arts Lottery Council and a member of the Massachusetts Council on the Arts and Humanities. He holds a J.D. from Suffolk University; a Master of Urban Affairs from Boston University; and an A.B. from Yale College. Mr. Fraze was a member of the Peace Corps from 1963 to 1970.

Barbara W. Grossman, Ph. D., Vice-Chair of the MCC, is an associate professor and chair of the Department of Drama and Dance at Tufts University. She has served as a presidential appointee to both the National Council on the Arts and the U. S. Holocaust Memorial Council, and counts among her honors the 1999 Hubert H. Humphrey Humanitarian Award from the National Jewish Democratic Council. She is a member of the MassEquality board, serves on advisory boards of the American Repertory Theatre, Tufts Hillel and the Institute for Global Leadership, and is an adjunct faculty member of the Tisch College of Citizenship and Public Service. A graduate of Smith College with masters degrees from Brandeis and Boston University, Grossman earned her doctorate from Tufts.

J. Elizabeth "Liz" Harris, is Executive Vice President of UNC Partners, Inc. of Boston, a financial management firm that has worked with institutional investors and currently works with entrepreneurs to develop and implement their respective growth strategies. In 1984 Harris opened and operated an art gallery specializing in African antiquities and contemporary works by African American artists. She currently serves on the boards of the Foley Hoag Foundation, MA Taxpayers Foundation, Domini Social Equity Fund, Boston History & Innovation Collaborative and the Advisory Council of the Trust for Public Lands. Harris is a graduate of Harvard College and Harvard’s School of Business Administration.

Frances F. Jacobson has been an invaluable contributor to education in Massachusetts and in a number of capacities. In 1956 she began her career as a 2nd grade school teacher, serving next as a school psychologist. Ms. Jacobson was also an outreach coordinator for the Worcester Arts Magnet School and later the Multiple Intelligences School—both for the Worcester Public Schools. From 1998 to 2002, she served as coordinator for the Worcester Arts and Humanities Educational Collaborative. She is a member of the Massachusetts Arts Education Advisory Council, a trustee of the EcoTarium, director of the Higgins Armory Museum, corporator for Worcester Art Museum, Music Worcester, Worcester Youth Guidance Center and Worcester Center for Crafts.

Ira S. Lapidus is President of the Board of Trustees of the Williamstown Theatre Festival, a position he has held since 1995. Dr. Lapidus served as a captain in the United States Air Force, holds a B.S. in Zoology from the University of Maryland, College Park and a D.M.D. from Tufts University in Boston. He was elected to four terms on the Mount Greylock School Committee and was Chairman of the Williamstown Recreation Committee.

Wyndham R.H. Lewis, currently Vice President of the Massachusetts High Technology Council, is an accomplished media and government relations professional. Mr. Lewis has been published in several magazines, including US Magazine, Details, Independent Film, FLM, Improper Bostonian, Shoot and PC-Magazine. Wyndham has also written and produced sports, entertainment and documentary programming for television and is the author of The 97th Percentile which was chosen as a semi-finalist for 2006 Nicholl Fellowship (Academy Awards screenwriting competition). He began his career in New York City in public relations and fundraising for the Museum of Television and Radio and several non-profit start-ups including the Gen-Art Film Festival. He serves on multiple boards including the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (Emmy Awards). A graduate of the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Wyndham currently resides in Boston’s South End with his wife Polly.

Jeanne Pinado is the President and Executive Director of Madison Park Development Corporation, a non-profit community development corporation in Roxbury. She has served as a Senior Equity Investment Officer at Massachusetts Housing Investment Corporation (MHIC) and as a Project Manager for Metropolitan Structures, working on development of commercial office buildings in downtown Boston and in Roxbury. She holds a BA in economics from the University of Virginia and an MBA in finance from Columbia University. She serves as the treasurer of Massachusetts Association of CDCs (MACDC) and a member of the Executive Committee of Citizens’ Housing and Planning Association (CHAPA). In 2003, she received the African-American Achievement Award for Community Service from the City of Boston and in 2005 received the Suzanne King Public Service Award from New England Women in Real Estate.

Malcom L. Sherman is chairman of the Gordon Brothers Group, a merchant services business, and a director of Active International, a media/barter company, and Paratek Pharmaceuticals. He was formerly chairman and executive vice-president of Zayre Corporation, and chief executive officer of Regina Electric Company, Chanel Home Centers, Inc., Morse Shoe Company, Ekco Group, Inc., and SmartBargains.com. Mr. Sherman is a former overseer of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and the former chairman of the Museum of Science, where he remains a trustee. He currently serves on the boards of Brandeis University, Museum of Science, Two Ten International Foundation, New England Medical Center, the Mass Eye and Ear Infirmary, The Fourth of July Foundation, and the Molecular Cardiology Research Institute.

David Starr is President of the Springfield Republican and Senior Editor of Newhouse Newspapers. He is a member of the American Society of Newspaper Editors and the Newspaper Association of America, as well as Director and past President of the Massachusetts Newspaper Publishers Association. A graduate of Queens College in New York City, Mr. Starr's community activities include affiliations with the Springfield Library & Museums Association, the Community Foundation of Western Massachusetts, Springfield Business Friends of the Arts and the Economic Development Council of Western Massachusetts.

Frederick C. Tillis is Director Emeritus of the University Fine Arts Center and Professor Emeritus in the Department of Music and Dance at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst. A composer, poet, and jazz saxophonist, Dr. Tillis received the 1997 Commonwealth Award for Organizational Leadership. He holds a B.A. in Music from Wiley College and an M.A. and Ph.D. in Music Compostion from the University of Iowa. Dr. Tillis has performed in scores of venues around the world.

Frederick J. Tirrell is a professional educator with over 25 years in administrative capacities. He was Superintendent of the Needham Public Schools, Associate head of Chapel Hill/Chauncey Hall School, and is currently an Associate Professor at Bridgewater State College. Dr. Tirrell is a member of the American Association of School Administrators, the Harvard Superintendents’ Round Table, and Suburban School Superintendents. He serves on the Board of Trustees of the Sturgis Charter School and the boards of Chapel Hill, Massachusetts/Ukraine Citizens Bridge, Inc., and Charles River Association for Retarded Citizens. Dr. Tirrell also serves on the advisory boards of Polaroid Corporation’s “Project Bridge” and the Massachusetts Department of Education’s School-based Improvement Project.

Rosamond B. Vaule participates in a number of civic and cultural activities. A trustee of the Brookline Community Fund and of Old South Meeting House, Ms. Vaule's other affiliations include the Overseer Advisory Committee of WGBH, Boston committee of Wellesley College Friends of Art, community advisor to Brookline Arts Center, board of visitors of the Women’s Union, and corporator of Larz Anderson Auto Museum. She has a B.A. from Wellesley College and an M.A. in Art History from Tufts University, and has recently published a book on American photographic postcards.

Carmen D. "Dolly" Vazquez is the Program Director for the Institute of Latino Arts & Culture at Centro Las Americas in Worcester. Ms. Vazquez is also a volunteer at and former board member of WCUW-FM and the host of a twice-weekly half hour show on Puerto Rico's culture, folklore and music. Her other community activities include being a corporator at the Worcester Art Museum, an advisory board member for Worcester Forum Theatre and a member of Hispanics Striving for Excellence Committee at Quinsigamond Community College. She holds a degree in Business Administration from Universidad Central de Bayamon in Puerto Rico.