The mission of the Sitka Fine Arts Camp is to build community in Alaska by providing opportunities in arts, culture and recreation in an inclusive, educational and inspirational environment.
Our Story
The Sitka Fine Arts Camp was founded in 1973 to provide isolated Alaskan communities with little or no youth arts programs exposure and training in the arts. Because of remoteness and low population density, Alaskan youth are at a severe disadvantage in access to high quality arts. For the majority of our students, SFAC continues to be the only opportunity they have in the state to work with and learn from professional artists. Building from its original mission, SFAC has become a nationally acclaimed program. We serve approximately 1,000 students annually from Alaska and throughout the world.
SFAC has received state and national recognition for its importance in providing access to high quality arts education to Alaskan youth including receiving the 2008 presidential Coming Up Taller Award and the 2015 Alaska Governor’s Award for Arts Organization of the Year.
In 2011, SFAC was gifted the historic Sheldon Jackson College Campus. This college campus had been closed for four years and was in a state of complete disrepair. SFAC has since overseen one of the most extraordinary grassroots volunteer stories in our country: the revitalization of this National Historic Landmark. Between 2011 and 2015 one thousand volunteers (one ninth of Sitka’s population) logged over 45,000 volunteer hours rebuilding the campus, demonstrating unprecedented community support and giving the Sitka Fine Arts Camp a permanent home. Strong volunteerism and donor support continue, demonstrating the value that Sitka Fine Arts Camp holds for our state. To learn more about the historical school please visit Voices of Sheldon Jackson School and College.
Having a permanent home has allowed SFAC to grow to serve more Alaskan youth. The Camp has expanded to offer four programs that serve almost 1,000 students. Each summer, SFAC provides over 160 classes in music, visual arts, digital arts, dance, creative writing, theater, and Alaska Native Art. Nationally recognized artist faculty come from throughout the country to teach. In addition, we have expanded to provide year-round arts programs including a Young Performers Theater and performing arts series. The campus has become a valuable community resource and a statewide location for arts and education.
The campus hosts retreats, weddings, and conferences. To make an inquiry about your rental needs Click Here.
SFAC has received state and national recognition for its importance in providing access to high quality arts education to Alaskan youth including receiving the 2008 presidential Coming Up Taller Award and the 2015 Alaska Governor’s Award for Arts Organization of the Year.
In 2011, SFAC was gifted the historic Sheldon Jackson College Campus. This college campus had been closed for four years and was in a state of complete disrepair. SFAC has since overseen one of the most extraordinary grassroots volunteer stories in our country: the revitalization of this National Historic Landmark. Between 2011 and 2015 one thousand volunteers (one ninth of Sitka’s population) logged over 45,000 volunteer hours rebuilding the campus, demonstrating unprecedented community support and giving the Sitka Fine Arts Camp a permanent home. Strong volunteerism and donor support continue, demonstrating the value that Sitka Fine Arts Camp holds for our state. To learn more about the historical school please visit Voices of Sheldon Jackson School and College.
Having a permanent home has allowed SFAC to grow to serve more Alaskan youth. The Camp has expanded to offer four programs that serve almost 1,000 students. Each summer, SFAC provides over 160 classes in music, visual arts, digital arts, dance, creative writing, theater, and Alaska Native Art. Nationally recognized artist faculty come from throughout the country to teach. In addition, we have expanded to provide year-round arts programs including a Young Performers Theater and performing arts series. The campus has become a valuable community resource and a statewide location for arts and education.
The campus hosts retreats, weddings, and conferences. To make an inquiry about your rental needs Click Here.
The Team
Roger SchmidtRoger Schmidt has been the Executive Director of Sitka Fine Arts Camp (Alaska Arts Southeast, Inc.) since 2000. During this time, the summer program has grown from a two week camp serving 40 adolescent students to a ten week program serving 1,000 students ages five to adult. In 2010, Roger negotiated the donation of the historic Sheldon Jackson School which had closed its doors in 2007. Subsequently, he has overseen the restoration of the campus by harnessing the support of thousands of volunteers and donors. Under Roger’s leadership, the Camp has grown to include a year long arts advocacy program that offers a performing arts series, a statewide teacher training institute, after school arts classes for all ages, and a vibrant young performer’s theater program. In addition, the Campus has become an important part of the economic future of Sitka as a home for many conferences and conventions. Roger grew up in Sitka and attended the Sitka Fine Arts Camp as a student from 1980-1984. The arts have been a central part of Roger’s life. He graduated from Oberlin College and Conservatory with degrees in philosophy and trombone performance with additional music studies at the Aspen Music Festival, Pierre Monteux School and internationally in London and at the Bruckner Conservatory in Austria. As a musician he has worked in the San Francisco Bay area as well as toured throughout Alaska and other parts of the United States. He is currently a member of the Juneau Symphony. Roger is also an avid traveler and adventurer. His trips have included a 3-month solo kayak trip from Vancouver B.C. to Sitka, Alaska, a kayak crossing of the Bering Strait, a Patagonia Ice-Cap ski crossing, and a year-long sailing trip from Siberia to Uruguay. He is the 2004 recipient of the Governor’s Award for Arts Education and in 2007, under his direction, the Camp received the Coming Up Taller Award at the White House. In 2012, he was inducted into the Alaska Hall of Fame and received the Sitka Arts Advocate of the Year award. Roger is also a fellow of the National Arts Strategies’ Chief Executive Program and a graduate of the Aspen Executive Seminar. |
Kenley JacksonKenley Jackson has been working at the Sitka Fine Arts Camp since the Fall of 2008. She grew up in Colorado and West Virginia before earning a B.A. in Biology from Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota. When she was six, she surprised herself by drawing a mermaid that actually looked like the picture in her head. Since then she has dabbled in many art forms from glass bead making to printmaking to paper cutting. She loves color and texture and experimenting with new techniques, especially working on graphic design projects for SFAC. Since 2011, she has worked on the transformation of the Sheldon Jackson Campus and developed new programming to serve more students each year as well as increasing access to financial aid. In 2016, she started the Sitka Arts and Science Festival and enjoys the challenge and creativity of interdisciplinary programming. On the weekends you'll find her hiking on the Sitka trails with her husband, a former SFAC camper from 1996-2003, visiting the library, and experimenting with new recipes.
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Rhiannon GuevinRhiannon Guevin has been the Operations Director for Sitka Fine Arts Camp (SFAC) since 2013. Prior to joining the organization full-time, Rhiannon attended SFAC as a camper in 2004 and 2007 and went on to be a counselor and intern during the summers. In addition to her administrative duties with the camp, which include financial management, program logistics, and grant writing, Rhiannon teaches voice at SFAC's High School Camp and provides vocal coaching for SFAC's Musical Theater Camp. Rhiannon helped to start SFAC's Young Performers Theater program in 2013 and still serves as the program's vocal coach during the year. She also teaches private voice lessons to a small studio. Rhiannon has served as an adjudicator for the classical voice and musical theater sections at Alaska's State Solo and Ensemble Music Festival. During the 2024-25 season, Rhiannon will be singing with Vox Humana, a San Francisco-based professional chorus. Rhiannon graduated summa cum laude from University of Puget Sound’s School of Music, where she received a BM in Vocal Performance with Honors in Music. During her time at Puget Sound she performed in opera scenes and full-scale productions, including the roles of Sophie in Der Rosenkavalier, Miss Titmouse in Too Many Sopranos!, and Mabel in The Pirates of Penzance. She was the fall 2011 winner of the University of Puget Sound’s Concerto/Aria Competition. Other roles include the Queen of the Night in Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte with the China Yunnan Opera Festival, Zerlina in Juneau Lyric Opera’s production of Don Giovanni, Olive Ostrovsky in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Cathy Hyatt in The Last Five Years, Wednesday Addams in The Addams Family, Woman 1 in Songs for a New World, Judy Bernly in 9 to 5, and Amélie Poulain in Amélie. Rhiannon has studied voice with Dr. Dawn Padula and Joseph Evans. |
Drew ShermanDrew, a seasoned musician, soldier, and entrepreneur, brings a unique blend of perspectives to his work at SFAC. Prior to joining the team in 2017, Drew traversed the country with his band, performing at clubs, festivals, and any venue that welcomed their music. His musical journey began with the US Army band, where he honed his skills and toured extensively. Drew's diverse background has instilled in him a knack for finding creative solutions that benefit everyone. Whether tackling business challenges, organizing events, managing rentals, overseeing productions, or providing IT support, Drew approaches each task with an innovative spirit. When not navigating the digital world, Drew can be found on stage, playing the tuba or bass. His passion for music and his entrepreneurial drive are evident in all that he does. |
Zeke BlackwellZeke Blackwell has been involved in over 80 productions as a director, actor, writer, designer, and technician, and has had the joy of making theater in Sitka, Fort Worth, New Haven, New York, and Costa Rica, where he directed the world premiere of the Spanish-language version of Once on this Island! With over a decade of improv comedy experience, he’s performed/taught improv around the country, and most recently at the Boston Comedy Arts Festival. His original play, Still Life, was produced in the 2013 New York International Fringe Festival. He graduated from Yale University with a B.A. in Cognitive Science. He served two years on the board of directors for Far Corners Community Musical Theatre, a non-profit dedicated to providing arts opportunities for underserved youth in isolated regions of the world. Once, he beat-boxed for Lin-Manuel Miranda. Zeke has been the Theater Director for SFAC since 2014.
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Paige CraigPaige was born and raised in Montana but has spent a lot of time in Sitka visiting family over the years. Paige grew up as a competitive athlete and played basketball at the college level. Her career as an athlete instilled in her a passion for health and fitness. She then wanted to pursue an occupation where she could promote the importance of exercise. She received a bachelor's degree in Health and Human Performance from the University of Providence in Great Falls, Montana, and a master's degree in the same field from the University of Montana. Paige has worked with Special Olympics, Sitka Grind Fitness, and as a personal trainer/group fitness instructor at the University of Montana. Paige has worked with a variety of populations: athletes, non-athletes, special needs, youth, teens, and adults. She recognizes the value in maintaining a healthy, active lifestyle to improve quality of life and understands the social, mental, emotional, and physical benefits of exercise. She also recognizes that every individual has different exercise goals. Paige is excited to be back in Sitka joining the team at the Hames Center and serving the community! |
Marty Emerson |
Rach RoachRach Roach (they/them) is a graduate of Purdue University with a Bachelor of Arts in Theater. Born and raised in Indiana, Rach has previously worked at Purdue Fort Wayne and Florida Studio Theatre and has experience as stage manager for touring, educational, and regional LORT-D theater ranging from improv to dance and world premiere plays. In addition to stage management, Rach is a rounded technician with ample credits in lighting, audio, scenery, props, costumes, and projection design and construction, as well as performance onstage. Rach is certified in prop weapon handling, hand and weapon stage combat, intimacy coordination, de-escalation, and Meyerhold's method of acting. Rach is inspired to create a safe space within the theater to express creativity and individuality, while amplifying silenced voices for diversity and positive change. |
Danny RyanDanny Ryan (he/him) began his creative career as a child, bringing life to G.I. Joes, making baseballs out of rags and duct tape, and playing soldier in the forest on summer camping trips. It was the fascination of taking a little bit of magic and imagination to create something from nothing that attracted him to the arts and specifically to dance. Danny began his professional ballet training at the age of fifteen in his hometown of Milwaukee, WI with Rafael Delgado. From that humble beginning, he was able to further his studies at the Joffrey Ballet School (NYC) with teacher and mentor John Magnus. Through that training he secured a ten year professional career with major companies Louisville Ballet, Kansas City Ballet and Texas Ballet Theater to name a few, as well as international performance credits. Since retiring from the stage Danny has cultivated a thriving career as a Dance Educator - serving students nationwide, Community Engagement Manager - creating curriculum and working with students in their classrooms to support their academic studies through movement at Title 1 Elementary Schools, and eventually as Associate Artistic Director of the Colorado Conservatory of Dance. In 2018 Danny and his family relocated to Milwaukee where he stepped outside of his career in the arts and for 6 and a half years thrived as Operations and Specialty Assistant Store Manager for the Home Depot. It was with Home Depot that he honed his skills around business acumen, leading people through a values based lens, and serving his community. These diverse experiences bring Danny back to the Sitka Fine Arts Camp (SFAC) where he served as Dance Faculty for 5 consecutive summers beginning 2014, and co-founded Dance Alaska Project with long-time collaborator Adam W. McKinney. It is with great joy that he is able to join the incredible creative minds of this organization as the Operations Coordinator to help serve SFAC's mission and continue to grow SFAC into the future. Here's to wonder, creativity, community, art, and the human experience! |
Doug ComstockDoug Comstock in the early 90's after graduating from The University of Oregon with a degree in Fine arts. With a background in cooking he worked and travelled around the country; cooking in Colorado at ski resorts, and summering in Alaska, with extensive road trips throughout the Four Corners/Southwest on the shoulder seasons in between. Doug has cooked in every form from restaurants to boarding schools and is very pleased to be working at the Sitka Fine Arts Camp |
Eric DowEric came to Sitka in '92 from Oregon to work for USFS doing timber work. He started maintaining the forest service cabins in '01. After SFAC acquired the campus, Eric volunteered his time and skills with the restoration, and came on the team part time in '13. Since retiring from the USFS in 2022 he now works full time in the Maintenance Dept as lead carpenter. Eric discovered his passion for wordworking in his late teens. Since then, it's been all about wood; wood as trees, wood as firewood, and wood as boards and buildings. You can always find him one of two places, in the forest or the wood shop. |
Lily PérezAmeriCorps Service Member Lily Pérez joins the Fine Arts Camp this season as a community organizer for the performing arts. She gets the word out about the arts around town, coordinates school outreach programs, and recruits volunteers. Born and raised in Washington, DC, Lily can be found around Sitka trying every coffee shop, learning to quilt, and challenging herself on new hikes. Lily is a past president of the Yale Dramatic Association and an Alto 1. 
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Harold AbelleraHarold bought, fixed up, and sold used cars in the Philippines before moving to Sitka in 2017. He works as Sitka Fine Arts Camp's Custodial Manager and also tackles basic maintenance work on campus. |
Ernesto AbelleraErnesto was a caregiver and packing service personnel in California before moving to Sitka in 2010. He works with Sitka Fine Arts Camp as a custodian. He loves eating and playing golf. |
The Sitka Fine Arts Camp Board
The Sitka Fine Arts Camp Board of Directors is a diverse group of individuals who share a love of the arts, empowering young people, and building community. The board meets four times a year as a whole in addition to committee work. It serves a critical role in providing leadership and vision to ensure a long future for the Sitka Fine Arts Camp and it's many programs. If you are interested in serving on the board, please contact Executive Director Roger Schmidt at 907-747-3085.
Marya PillifantMarya Pillifant is the owner of Milly Builders, an Anchorage based construction project management company. She has a BA in International Studies form the University of Wyoming and a Certificate of Political Studies from the University of Aix Marseille III, Aix-en-Provence, France. Marya apprenticed with the South Central Alaska Carpenter’s Union and received her journeyman carpenter’s license in 1997. Marya’s family has been in Alaska for 3 generations working in construction and aviation in Kodiak, Valdez and Anchorage. She was named Constructive Woman of the Year in 2011 by the National Association of Women in Construction. She loves coming to Sitka and is especially keen on the historic old buildings of the Sheldon Jackson Campus. Marya is a founder of the SFAC Anchorage based fundraiser, Raise The Roof! which has raised more than $150,000 for building restoration on campus. She is very excited to have built a "bridge of support" from Anchorage to Sitka. Marya is a founder of Winterberry Charter School, Alaska’s first public Waldorf school. She is also an artist and enjoys painting with oil and watercolor. Marya has a studio in Anchorage in Spenard’s eclectic art center, the Church of Love. Marya is married to Tom Pillifant and they have three children. She spends her time in Anchorage, at the family cabin on Hesketh Island and Sitka. |
Blossom Teal-OlsenBlossom Teal-Olsen (Paniiraq) is a writer and poet and has published pieces about her childhood in various publications such as: The Yellow Medicine Review, Alaska Women Speak! and First Alaskans Institute Magazine. She is a graduate of Mt. Edgecumbe High School. Blossom was born Kotzebue, Alaska and lives in Sitka with her husband and children. |
Mollie KablerMollie Kabler is a non-profit media executive at CoastAlaska and Alaska Public Broadcasting Inc. who loves living in Sitka and working with Alaskans that care about arts, education, and public media. Mollie earned her bachelor’s degree at Carleton College as a biology major and a Master’s in Public Administration from University of Alaska SE. Mollie has been active in many facets of the Sitka community including 12 years as an elected school board member. She was appointed by Governor Knowles to the Alaska Public Broadcasting Commission and served as co-chair. Her leadership on the Sitka Performing Arts Center committee helped to create community support to build our beautiful facility. Her daughters spent many happy hours every summer at Sitka Fine Arts Camp and have helped in the community rebuild of the SJ Campus. We are a commercial fishing family and love spending time on the waters around Sitka. Mollie loves camping, hiking and gardening. Her seasonal radio shows about how to garden in southeast Alaska has been on the air every spring for over 25 years. |
Amy RhyneerAmy was raised in small, experimental, fledgling independent schools. She brought her passion for community-centered, project-based education to Alaska when she moved there with her husband, George, in 1999. She served on the board of trustees for Pacific Northern Academy for nine years, two as the Chair, and currently serves on the board of governors for Alaska Public Media, serving as Secretary. Amy has two children who have attended Sitka Fine Arts Camp for a cumulative twelve years (so far). She has just become an enrolled student again, pursuing an MFA in Creative Writing from Lesley University’s low-residency program. When not messing about in schools, Amy likes to mess about in boats, spend time at the family’s cabin in Seldovia, and hike or walk anywhere. |
Paul CoxPaul Cox, PhD, serves as Chair of the Mandel Humanities Center at Cuyahoga Community College. From 2014-2024, he served as Dean of Creative Arts overseeing 9 academic programs, an extensive preparatory academy for young folks, and a performing arts series that included the acclaimed Tri-C JazzFest. He previously taught music courses at Oberlin College, the Cleveland Institute of Music, and Case Western Reserve University, where he was a SAGES fellow and Director of the Case Percussion Group. From 2012-2013, he was the Director of Sitka Fest, a summer-long arts and culture festival supported by an NEA "Our Town" Grant that featured a TEDx conference, theater, music and dance performances, exhibitions, lectures and classes for all ages in Sitka, Alaska. He also taught the Percussion Masterclass and the Music Composition class at SFAC and frequently returns to play with the Holiday Brass. In 2011, he earned a Ph.D. from CWRU after completing his dissertation, Collaged Codes: John Cage’s Credo in US.” From 1996-2005, he served as the Assistant Curator of Music at the Cleveland Museum of Art, where he was also the co-director of Aki Festival of New Music (three-time winner of the CMA/ASCAP Award for Adventurous Programming). A graduate of the Oberlin Conservatory, Cox was a fellow at Yale's Norfolk New Music Festival and completed additional studies at the Aspen Music School, the Royal College of Music (London), and Rice University. He lives in Cleveland with his wife Kirsten Docter and their two cats Stefano and Atticus. Their two “adult” boys, Benjamin and Sebastian are proud alums of SFAC. |
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James PoulsonJames Poulson is a photographer who grew up in Sitka. He helps run the Sitka Sentinel, which is a family-owned daily newspaper. He has been involved in many historic restoration projects in Sitka including restoring Tilly Paul Manor adjacent to the Sheldon Jackson campus for adaptive re-use as a hostel and the many on-going restoration projects of the Fine Arts Camp. He is married to Kristen Homer, who volunteers at camp. They have two daughters, Lucy and Addie, who are active in the arts and, not surprisingly, love attending (and working at) Camp. His interest in the Sitka Fine Arts Camp began when he was a camper in the 1970s. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and art history from Colgate University. He is a member of the Sitka Historic Preservation Commission. He holds a Master's Degree in historic preservation from Boston Architectural College. |
Andrew WeissAndy grew up in New York City and graduated from Rhode Island School of Design in 1997 with a Bachelor of Architecture. During the beginning of his career, he worked for an international architecture firm in San Francisco with a focus on healthcare and aviation projects.Since joining KPB Architects in 2004, Andy has been a leading contributor on highly complex projects. His project approach includes cross collaboration with-in the architectural team, project consultants, the contractor, and the client. His broad range of project types and delivery methods has formed his 25+ years of professional knowledge. His commitment to clients and his passion for meeting the project goals and vision have driven him to provide exceptional project outcomes. Andy frequently attends national healthcare conferences and has been a speaker at the Environments for Aging Conference. He also led the team on the ANTHC Patient Housing project which received an award from the American Institute of Architects and an award from the International Interior Design Association. In his free time, Andy enjoys spending time outdoors with his wife and two daughters, often fishing on the Kenai Peninsula, hiking in the mountains, or skiing at Alyeska Resort. |
Oskar YaoOskar is currently a manager at Google, overseeing Alphabet’s public equity portfolio and share repurchase program among other strategic and financial initiatives. Prior to joining Google, he was a senior equity research associate at BMO Capital Markets covering Internet and Media. Oskar started his career in investment banking at Crédit Agricole in the financial sponsors coverage group before joining S&P Global as a credit analyst covering media and entertainment. Previously, Oskar maintained an active career as a concert pianist and avid ambassador for music engaged in a variety of performance practices targeting a wide array of audiences. He has received many recognitions including First Prize at the Eastman International Piano Competition, First Prize at the Morningside Music Bridge International Concerto and Chamber Music competitions, Third Prize at the Louisiana International Piano competition, and top prizes at numerous other national and international competitions across North America. He has performed solo concerts and with orchestra across the world in venues ranging from the Shanghai Grand Theater, Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, the National Arts Centre, and many more. Oskar received his Bachelors of Arts in Financial Economics with a minor in Math from Columbia University while concurrently pursuing his Masters of Music in Piano at the Juilliard School under the Columbia / Juilliard exchange program. His teachers have included Yoheved Kaplinsky, Robert McDonald, Jerome Lowenthal, Gary Graffman, and Chengzong Yin. Oskar was born in China, but was raised in Uppsala (Sweden) for nearly a decade before moving to Calgary (Canada) where his family still resides. He is the co-founder of the Super Piano Brothers, a groundbreaking piano duo specializing in self-arranged and composed music of all genres. After spending a decade in Manhattan, Oskar currently lives in California and still loves astronomy as much as in his younger days when he wanted to become an astronaut. |
Sitka Fine Arts Endowment Board
The Sitka Fine Arts Endowment was founded in June 2019 with a one time gift of $1 million from the Skaggs Foundation, a family foundation administered by former SFAC board president, Sam Skaggs. The goal of the endowment is to bring long term stability to the Sitka Fine Arts Camp, providing resilience in the form of stable and growing funding. It has continued to expand each year thanks to the generous support of donors. The endowment is an independent organization; the sole purpose is to provide annual support for Sitka Fine Arts Camp from the interest and dividends from investments. The by-laws require that the principal is protected and conservatively invested. Each year a 4.5% interest payout is made to Sitka Fine Arts Camp.
The Sitka Fine Arts Endowment was formed in order to honor and preserve the investment that our volunteers and donors have given towards supporting our programs and revitalizing the campus. Our goal is to raise $5 million towards our endowment, which would ensure longevity, security, and strength towards a permanent future. By investing in our endowment, your gift is building a legacy for future generations of students and participants. The campus is a rich educational resource for Alaska and our nation and an incubator and sanctuary for the arts.
The Sitka Fine Arts Endowment was formed in order to honor and preserve the investment that our volunteers and donors have given towards supporting our programs and revitalizing the campus. Our goal is to raise $5 million towards our endowment, which would ensure longevity, security, and strength towards a permanent future. By investing in our endowment, your gift is building a legacy for future generations of students and participants. The campus is a rich educational resource for Alaska and our nation and an incubator and sanctuary for the arts.
Sam SkaggsSam Skaggs came to Fairbanks, Alaska in 1975 to manage the musk ox farm for the University of Alaska after graduating from Hampshire College. He has built super insulated homes as a contractor, served as comptroller of a computer company, and became one of the States first registered investment advisors. In 1985 he moved to Juneau, started a company to build custom child carriers with John Ingalls and then built up his investment business starting in 1995. With partner, Amy Volz, they sold the investment business known as Verdant, LLC, in 2021 and Sam retired. Skaggs moved to Sitka in 2014 in part to be more involved with SFAC. Three of his four children attended camp and most of them for the full 6 years. He became a SFAC Board member in 2011 when the campus transferred from the closed Sheldon Jackson College and served as SFAC Board President until 2021. “ Working with all the many dedicated folks who love this camp, and the campus has been one of the best experiences of my life.” |
Scott DavisScott Davis is a Seattle-based educator and dance improviser. He is on faculty at the Northwest School where he teaches in the Dance and Humanities departments. An alumnus of the Sitka Fine Arts camp and a former faculty member for the camp, he considers SFAC the single most influential institution on his self-perception and worldview. Scott toured with Lingo Dance Theater in the early 2000s and continues to perform and teach with AVID, an ensemble of dance improvisers. He has a law degree from the University of Washington where he focused on non-profit law and human rights. |
Elizabeth BagleyElizabeth Bagley, Ph.D., is an interdisciplinary environmental scientist and learning scientist with experience spanning academia, business, and the nonprofit sector. As managing director, Elizabeth guides Project Drawdown’s overall strategy and keeps programs and operations functioning smoothly across the organization. Before joining Project Drawdown she led higher education-focused climate workforce development at SEI, directed sustainability efforts at the California Academy of Sciences, and designed the science content for video games at LeapFrog. Elizabeth frequently speaks about climate solutions and was invited to create two LinkedIn Learning courses focused on sustainability that have engaged tens of thousands of learners from around the world. An experienced environmental educator, Elizabeth worked as a naturalist in Glacier National Park, taught middle and high school science in Louisiana, created K–12 professional development programs for teachers, and designed a science communication course for graduate students. Elizabeth holds joint Ph.D.s in environment & resources and educational psychology from the University of Wisconsin at Madison, where she studied how video games can encourage systems thinking about complex environmental topics. Outside of work, Elizabeth enjoys volunteering on her community’s Sustainability Commission and Science Center board, hiking, reading romance novels, berry picking, and adventuring with her family and friends. |
