Governor Strickland Appoints New Ohio Arts Council Board Members
by Stephanie Dawson
Governor Ted Strickland has appointed Austin Keyser of Portsmouth, Rori Herman Zoldan of Canfield and reappointed Sharon Howard of Dayton to the Ohio Arts Council board. Louisa G. Celebrezze of Columbus, whose term expires July 1, 2013, has been named vice chair. Mr. Keyser and Ms. Zoldan will serve terms ending July 1, 2015, replacing Mary Lazarus of Columbus and Sheila Markley Black of Canton, whose terms expired. Ms. Howard was reappointed for a term ending July 1, 2015.
“We are delighted to have appointees who possess long-held commitments and connections to their communities and the arts,” said Julie Henahan, Executive Director of the Ohio Arts Council. “Each appointee’s experience and background will be a great asset to our board.”
Austin Keyser of Portsmouth is the business manager/financial secretary for the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local No. 575. Mr. Keyser is secretary-treasurer of the Shawnee District AFL-CIO Council and serves on the boards of the Southern Ohio Museum and Cultural Center and the Central Ohio Area Labor Federation, among others. He founded the Portsmouth Labor Murals Project, a project consisting of more than 180 feet of murals dedicated to local workers. Mr. Keyser also established the Common Cause Agency of Portsmouth, a 501(c)3 entity whose board of directors is comprised of labor, business and religious leaders.
Rori Herman Zoldan of Canfield is the vice president of retail sales at B.J. Alan Company. She is an active member of the Ohev Tzedek Congregation and the American Cancer Society. She also serves on the board of the Youngstown Symphony Society. Ms. Zoldan immigrated to the United States from Israel in 1980. She received her bachelor’s degree in abnormal psychology from the Ramat Aviv University in Tel Aviv.
Sharon Howard from Dayton was first appointed to the OAC board for a term ending July 1, 2010, replacing Gail Johnson, who resigned. Ms. Howard, formerly the executive director of community and public relations for WDTN Channel 2, now serves as director of marketing & communications at the Dayton Development Coalition. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in television communication from the University of Dayton.
Louisa G. Celebrezze of Columbus was appointed to the OAC board in July 2008. A clinical social worker in private practice, Ms. Celebrezze earned her Master of Science in Social Administration from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland in 1986. Her undergraduate degree from the University of North Carolina in Greensboro is in Asian Studies. As a Cleveland resident from 1968 to 1991, she was a long-time supporter of the arts there, including the Cleveland Orchestra, the Cleveland Museum of Art, the Beck Center for the Performing Arts, the Cleveland Opera and the Great Lakes Theatre Festival. In Columbus since 1991, Ms. Celebrezze served many years on the board of the American Red Cross as secretary and chair of volunteers, receiving the Board Chair’s Annual Leadership Award in 1998.
About the Ohio Arts Council:
The Ohio Arts Council is a state agency that funds and supports quality arts experiences to strengthen Ohio communities culturally, educationally and economically.
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