Kate Lorenz is the Hyde Park Art Center’s Executive Director, a role she assumed in 2010. She has led a period of transformation and growth that has made the Art Center a national leader in how an institution can cultivate an authentic community that is part of people’s daily lives, while investing in its city’s diverse artists and voices. This work was recognized with a MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions in 2016 and has served as a model for peer institutions and leaders nationally. Under her tenure, the Art Center has launched a Residency Program for local and international artists; expanded its work with teen artists from across Chicago’s south side; created a professional development program for working artists; and played pivotal roles in the careers of artists such as Amanda Williams, Theaster Gates, and many others. It has also expanded its impact and footprint through the creation of the Guida Family Creative Wing which houses studios and resources for artists at all levels. The Art Center is currently developing a new model for how community members of all economic backgrounds across Chicago, and especially the South Side, can train as artists and creative leaders.
Kate has served on numerous grant and award committees locally and nationally and frequently presents at conferences and on panels. A native of Nashville, TN, she has lived her entire adult life in Chicago. She has a BA in Mathematical Methods in the Social Sciences and Psychology from Northwestern University and received her MA in Humanities at the University of Chicago. She’s an alumnus of The Chief Executive Program of the National Arts Strategies as well as the Strategic Perspectives in Nonprofit Management Program at Harvard University. She was a founding member and board member of Enrich Chicago, a collective of arts organizations in Chicago working towards racial equity in the field, and is an adjunct faculty at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in the Masters of Arts Administration and Policy program. She has served on the Auxiliary Board of High Jump Chicago, as Docent President at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago, and on the board of the Development Leadership Consortium. Past experience includes working as a Management Consultant for PwC Consulting in Chicago.
Website: https://www.hydeparkart.org/staff/
MSLCE Course: Cultural Nonprofit Organizations, Winter 2020