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John R. Killacky, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts

John R. Killacky joined Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, a multidisciplinary visual, performing and media arts center located in San Francisco, CA, as executive director in December 1996. He is responsible for artistic direction, budget planning and control, organizational planning, fundraising, staff management, public relations, audience development and community relations.

For eight years Killacky served as Curator, Performing Arts for the Walker Art Center, an international multidisciplinary arts institution dedicated to 20th century art, located in Minneapolis, MN. At the Walker, Killacky was responsible for artistic direction, budget planning and control, fundraising, and staff management for a contemporary performing arts program presenting more than 100 performances annually.

In 1995, Killacky received the First Bank Sally Ordway Irvine Award in the category of Artistic Vision, and the William Dawson Award for Programming Excellence from the Association of Performing Arts Presenters. In June 2000, he received the Dance/USA Ernie Award, honoring 'unsung heroes' who have led exemplary lives in dance and in 2001, was awarded a Gerbode Foundation Professional Development Fellowship.

Killacky is also an educator, writer, and filmmaker. He has served as Adjunct Professor at the University of Minnesota, 1991-1996, teaching a class on contemporary aesthetics within a historical framework as well as fundraising, administration, marketing, and curatorial issues in arts administration. He has written numerous publications on the arts, written and directed several short award-winning films and videos and served as a consultant and lecturer for a wide range of non-profit organizations.

Killacky also served as a Program Officer for The Pew Charitable Trusts, where he was responsible for developing cultural policies and application guidelines and evaluating proposals for projects in historic preservation, music, dance, theater, and the visual arts. Killacky has also held positions as general manager for PepsiCo Summerfare 1986; managing director for Trisha Brown Dance Company, Inc; and executive director for Laura Dean Dancers and Musicians.

He received his bachelor's of art degree from Hunter College in New York City, with a major in psychology and education.