the Power of Young Voices

Claudia Levin spent much of her career as Senior Producer/Project Manager at Monadnock Media, a nonprofit company specializing in the design and production of multimedia experiences for museums. She produced orientation experiences, interactive environments, and immersive installations for major museums and cultural institutions including: the Smithsonian’s Museum of African American History and Culture, the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum, the Southern Poverty Law Center’s Civil Rights Memorial Center, the FDR Presidential Library and Museum, the Harry S. Truman Presidential Library and Museum, among many others.

Across those projects, the through-line was the same conviction that drives Art Speaks: to tell powerful stories that celebrate and uplift all voices and help move people toward empathy, justice, and connection.

With Art Speaks she brings her experience creating large-scale public installations to a new stage—one built by and for the young people of Western Massachusetts.

Keta J. Cowan is a human rights attorney, nonprofit executive, and civic leader in Ann Arbor, Michigan. She founded and chairs the Local Government ID Project, the nation’s first government-issued photo ID in the Midwest. Her point-based eligibility policy—which eliminated the Catch-22 of needing a government ID to obtain a government ID—has been adopted in Detroit, Kalamazoo County, and communities across the country. Keta Cowan specializes in drafting legislation, government program policy and representing the legal rights of vulnerable and marginalized communities in civil and criminal cases. She investigates claims of discrimination as an Ann Arbor Human Rights Commissioner and is Principal Consultant for Human Rights in Action. Keta brings her legal smarts, can-do attitude and deep compassion to Art Speaks.

Steve Bressler was the Founder and Executive Director of Monadnock Media. For more than 45 years, he was the creative force behind hundreds of museum projects across the United States, overseeing the development of multimedia experiences from design through installation. Steve brings to Art Speaks deep expertise in exhibit design and production, along with extensive experience managing 1M+ budgets. He led Monadnock with the belief that thoughtful, provocative museum experiences can broaden perspectives, strengthen communities, and help make the world a little better—a conviction he brings to Art Speaks.

Shelley Abend Zimbalist has dedicated her career to advancing social justice through community leadership, philanthropy, and nonprofit development. She has served as Director of Community Organizing and Housing for HCAC, Managing Director of the Solidago Foundation, a progressive charitable grantmaking nonprofit, and Board President and Development Consultant to the Sojourner Truth School for Social Change Leadership.

Throughout her work, Shelley has built partnerships, strengthened organizations, and expanded opportunities for communities facing systemic inequities. Across these roles, she has been drawn to work that brings people together and helps individuals and communities find their voice and power.

She is excited to help raise up the voices of young people and explore the unique power of art, creativity, and community.