AIGA staff

Katie Baker, conference producer, 212 710 3146
Katie organizes AIGA’s biennial design conference, design and business conference, and annual leadership retreat. She collaborates with staff and volunteer committees to develop conference programming, manages the design and production of all event collateral, and coordinates presenters, their materials and logistics.

Katie brings a range of experience to AIGA. Most recently, she was a member of the marketing team at Two Twelve Associates, a multidisciplinary graphic design firm in New York City. She previously lived in China, where she studied in Beijing and taught English at a women's college in Fuzhou. Katie earned a BA in history and a BA in East Asian studies from New York University.

Jennifer Bender, director of communications and marketing, 212 710 3136
Jennifer manages all communications and marketing originating from the AIGA national office, including member communications, newsletters, media outreach, event promotion, news and policy statements. As AIGA’s social media leader, she manages the organization’s brand across multiple channels, oversees staff involvement and leverages opportunities in emerging platforms. Her primary responsibilities are to provide value through communications to members and stakeholders, and to advocate for the profession by communicating the value of design to business leaders, government officials, media and the public.

With a background in marketing and the arts, Jennifer brings both a sharp eye and an analytic mind to the communications team. Her decade of experience has run the gamut from print production to developing marketing strategies, and from regional nonprofits to national financial institutions. Jennifer holds a BA in fine arts from the College of St. Catherine in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Kathleen Budny, program director, 212 710 3144
Kathleen collaborates with staff and volunteer committees to orchestrate AIGA’s biennial design conference and design and business conference. Kathleen also works to create partnerships with universities and other providers to program professional development at a national level.

With degrees from the University of North Carolina and the Royal College of Music, Kathleen has directed arts education departments within NYC nonprofits for several years. Previously, she worked in London as an educator with Arts Council England, London Borough of Ealing and Arts Award UK. Kathleen has also served on the New York based Arts in Education Roundtable, a professional association for arts educators, where she was a member of the conference committee. She also has extensive experience planning and leading professional development workshops.

Steve Burhans, facilities/traveling exhibitions coordinator, 212 710 3110
Steve’s areas of responsibility include the daily operations and maintenance of the National Design Center, AIGA’s headquarters. He is also responsible for office supplies, equipment, mail and shipping. Steve is the liaison for traveling exhibitions, including the “365: AIGA Annual Design Exhibition” and “50 Books/50 Covers” shows.

Steve is currently completing his BA in communications.

Christine Caruana, administrative assistant, 212 710 3111 
Christine oversees the production and testing of Communiqué, AIGA's monthly newsletter to members, Inform, AIGA's quarterly newsletter for in-house designers, and The Buzz, AIGA's newsletter for emerging designers and students, as well as all other electronic messages. She provides oversight for partner marketing deliverables. Christine is the main contact for the Worldstudio AIGA Scholarships and she also serves as the first point of contact with visitors to the gallery at the National Design Center and those who call or email AIGA.

Christine has worked for letterpress studio, Pistachio Press in Rochester, NY and sculpture residency, Sculpture Space in Utica, NY. Christine earned a BA in Studio Arts and Anthropology from the University of Rochester.

Amy Chapman, project manager, 212 710 3137
Amy works to recruit and connect interested and active members with various AIGA programs and initiatives and helps to develop systems for maintaining member involvement and communication. In this role, she is the primary contact for engaging designers who want to advance the mission and goals of AIGA for the profession. Amy is also AIGA’s principal liaison with other organizations and with the board and board committees.

Amy earned a BFA in painting from the State University of New York at Buffalo.

Kathleen Cox, controller, 212 710 3127
Kathleen is responsible for AIGA’s accounting, bookkeeping and administration. Her duties include internal controls, policies and procedures according to established audit norms, liaison with outside auditors overseeing the annual audits, corporate tax returns and financial reports. She assures that AIGA’s business activities comply with AIGA policies aimed at fiduciary responsibility as well as with federal, state and local regulations.

Kathleen has many years of experience in accounting. She served as the director of finance for the New York Society for the Deaf for three years and as its executive director for four years. Kathleen earned her BS in accounting from Georgian Court University.

Jonathan Feinberg, director of events, 212 710 3142
Jonathan creates compelling and profitable educational and networking experiences by defining optimal environments and making sound business decisions that foster the mission and direction of AIGA. For all nationally-hosted conferences and events, he evaluates location, contractor and vendor options and directs pre-conference, onsite and post-conference activity. Jonathan serves as tactical advisor for the planning, budgeting and execution of the Design Educators Conferences, as well as other regional events and is the lead producer for AIGA’s web conferencing initiatives.

Jonathan earned his BA in business from the University of New Hampshire and brings more than 15 years of conference, event and hospitality management experience to AIGA.

George Fernandez, membership director, 212 710 3132
George maintains AIGA’s membership database and is the primary customer service contact for membership inquiries from chapter membership coordinators. He is responsible for providing membership recruitment materials, helping coordinators use the workroom, generating invoices and monitoring and maintaining group memberships as well as sending out regular mailings (postcards, new-member packets, membership cards). He answers questions about membership status, which benefits members should have been sent and who belongs on a group membership.

George holds a BA in liberal arts from Queens College. Previously, he was responsible for membership at another association and maintained client records for a health care organization.

Richard Grefé, executive director, 212 710 3100
Ric is the CEO of AIGA, the professional association for design. He is generally involved in all of AIGA’s activities, although his major contributions are in strategy, formulating new initiatives to enhance the competitive success of designers and advocating the value of design.

Ric earned a BA from Dartmouth College, crafted books at Stinehour Press, spent several years in intelligence work in Asia, reported from the Bronx County Courthouse for AP, wrote for Time magazine on business and the economy and then earned an MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business. Following a career in urban design and public policy consulting, Ric managed the association responsible for strategic planning and legislative advocacy for public television and led a think tank on the future of public television and radio. He has been at AIGA since 1995, developing programs that reinforce the relevance of design as an extraordinary creative gift and a critical element of business strategy.

David Hall, member experience manager, 212 710 3133
David is AIGA’s primary liaison to student groups and faculty coordinators, as well as student members in general. David also serves as the liaison to a task force addressing the needs of designers working in corporate and institutional design departments. In responding to member inquiries by phone or email, he pays close attention to ways in which AIGA can improve the member experience and works with the team to implement those improvements.

David has several years of experience processing payments, working with financial databases and working with the public. He has a BA in music and performs regularly.

Tiia Schurig, web development director, 212 710 3134
Tiia is responsible for managing technical support and integration for AIGA. Her responsibilities include coordinating with all of AIGA's technical partners to ensure website maintenance, enhance user experience and oversee the development and execution of new web-based projects.

Tiia earned a BA in art history and a BA in humanities from the University of South Florida.

Rebecca Sears, managing editor, 212 710 3123
Rebecca is part of the team devoted to making the AIGA website an informative and inspiring destination for designers, students, business leaders and members of the broader public who are curious about design. She manages AIGA’s Design Envy, a curated blog of design excellence, and contributes to various editorial projects and initiatives at AIGA.

Rebecca earned a BA in American Studies from Brown University and studied photography and related media at the School of Visual Arts and the Royal College of Arts. She has served as an editor for Art on Paper, ARTnews and Oxford University Press.

Heather Strelecki, director of special projects, 212 710 3145
Heather provides support on a wide variety of information resources. She is the primary contact for event registration and design competition inquiries. In addition, she manages the AIGA library, institutional archives and the AIGA Design Archives. Her responsibilities include effectively communicating with conference attendees and competition entrants; timely processing and notification of financial transactions; monitoring the AIGA website for necessary updates; assisting membership and fundraising teams; and organizing digital and print information and artifacts.

Heather earned a BA in art history from Edinboro University of Pennsylvania and an MS in library and information science with an advanced certificate in archives from Pratt Institute. She brings customer service and administrative experience from STERIS Corporation. She was a contributing art writer for the Erie Times News, and she serves on the board at Kentler International Drawing Space in Brooklyn.

Denise Wood, chief operating officer, 212 710 3135
Denise is responsible for operational decisions within AIGA, overseeing development and implementation of AIGA’s budget. She is responsible for knowledge management within the organization and AIGA’s information systems. She works closely with the executive director to implement plans in virtually all membership and strategic areas of AIGA.

Denise earned a BA from Oberlin College and an MBA in information management from George Washington University.