Kate Dumbleton,
Executive Director
Kate took the helm as Executive Director of the CJE in the fall of 2009. Kate graduated cum laude with a BA in History and English from Hamilton College in Clinton, NY
and has an MA in Arts Administration and Policy from the School of the Art
Institute of Chicago. She
has been working in the arts in various capacities since 1994. In addition to
owning her own successful art exhibition and performance space in San
Francisco, Kate's experience includes music direction and programming for jazz
clubs and festivals; curatorial and project direction of artist residencies for
nonprofit arts organizations; project and production direction; venue and
record label management; administrative direction; and artist management. She
is particularly interested in interdisciplinary and collaborative
projects. Her most recent work includes projects with jazz
composer/musician Marcus Shelby, the Rova Saxophone Quartet, curator/writer
John Corbett, the Chicago Composers Forum, the MCA Chicago, Spoken Word Artist
Marc Bamuthi Joseph, AACM members George Lewis, Douglas R. Ewart and Nicole
Mitchell, the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Yerba Buena Garden
Festival, and the Chicago Cultural Center. In all of her work, Kate seeks to create opportunities for the intersection between the arts and social justice
advocacy.
Darius Hampton,
Director of Education and Music Library Manager
Darius began
working for the Chicago Jazz Ensemble in summer 2007, starting as the Music Librarian.
In 2008, he was promoted to Education Director. Darius began to study music at the
age of 10, first on the clarinet and eventually he learned to play saxophone
and other woodwinds. As a teenager, he began to play professional gigs and
compose and arrange music for various ensembles. He continued his studies at
the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where he earned his BM in Jazz
Studies in 2005 and his MM in Jazz Performance in 2009. Major programs and
collaborations under his care at the CJE include the Louis Armstrong Legacy
Program and Celebration, the Straight Ahead Jazz Summer Camp, and master
classes with guest artists performing with the CJE.
Laura Paisley,
Marketing and Communications Manager
Laura joined the CJE staff in the fall of 2010. She received a BA in History from Macalester College in St. Paul, MN before moving to Boston, where she worked as a marketing assistant in the Trade Division of Houghton Mifflin Publishing Company. Upon moving to Chicago, Laura took an editorial internship with Venus Zine in addition to doing some freelance writing. She worked in concert/event promotion for five years at Pick-Staiger Concert Hall at Northwestern University's Bienen School of Music, first as Marketing Coordinator and later being promoted to Marketing Manager. Laura directs the CJE's marketing and communication initiatives relating to arts community partnerships, audience development, media and PR, advertising, and partnerships and collaborations within the Columbia College community.
Ruby C. Schucker, Director of Development
Ruby C. Schucker earned her BA in Elementary Education from
Northeastern Illinois University and has taught in the Chicago Public Schools
system. She has been working as a development professional since 1979. Stemming
from her efforts as both a senior level fundraiser and Consultant (through her
small business, Consultants for Causes) she has been instrumental in helping
organizations to successfully enhance both their fundraising and outreach
initiatives. Some of the entities that Ruby has worked on behalf of include
Evanston Northwestern Healthcare, Chicago Youth Centers, Glenkirk, Friends of
the Parks, and the Off the Street Club. She
has also worked extensively during the past thirty years with local media outlets
in her role as the spokesperson for various charitable agencies.
CJE INTERN STAFF:
John Lauler, Education/LALPC Intern, 2011-12
Stephanie Travis, Marketing and Communications Intern, Spring 2012
PRODUCTION TEAM:
Dayna Calderon, Stage Manager/Production
An alumna of Columbia
College, Dayna earned her BA degree in Arts Management. In addition to her work with the CJE during the 2010-11 season, her professional accomplishments include serving as producer of the
nationally syndicated broadcasts of the Chicago Blues, Gospel, Jazz, and
Viva Festivals from Grant Park. She has also worked as Production/Stage Manager at Pritzker Pavilion, Production/Stage Manager for the Chicago Humanities Festival, Producer/Director for WBGO and National Public Radio's live New Year's Eve program: "Toast of the Nation," Concert Production Director at the Old Town School of Folk Music, and Director of Programming Operations/Producer at WBEZ, Chicago Public Radio.
Chris Bales, Production
Chris Bales has been working with the CJE since 2010, starting out as an intern and then joining the production team. He attended Indiana State University, graduating in 2010 with a dual degree in Music Business Administration and Jazz Studies.
Gwenne Godwin, Lighting Designer
Gwenne has worked
in the Theater Department at Columbia College for over fifteen years,
where she currently serves as Producion Lighting Coordinator. She has
worked with the Chicago Jazz Ensemble since 2005.
Scott Helmke, Sound Engineer
Audio Engineer Scott Helmke works for TC Furlong, a successful audio equipment sales and rental company in Lake Forest, IL.
