The Boston Foundation Welcomes New Arts & Culture Director

Boston – Allyson Esposito, a veteran arts and philanthropy advocate, has been hired as the new Director of Arts & Culture for the Boston Foundation.

Esposito comes to Boston from the City of Chicago, where since 2012 she has served as the city’s Director of Cultural Grant-making, in the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events. In that role she was charged with fostering partnerships and lasting relationships in Chicago’s non-profit arts sector, independent artists, and for-profit art institutions.

Esposito has extensive experience in the fields of cultural planning and the strategic development of arts programs. She served as Program Officer for the Mayer & Morris Kaplan Family Foundation for four years, assisting in the grant-making process. She also served as Executive Director of the Space Movement Project, a non-profit contemporary dance organization featured in eight original world premieres, as well as shorter pieces for festivals and concerts in the Greater Chicago area.

A 2005 graduate of the DePaul University College of Law, Esposito also holds a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism and English from the Miami University of Ohio, where she was involved in Dance Theater Company. She received interdisciplinary dance training at The School of the Salt Creek Ballet in Westmont, IL, and also provides professional legal services to non-profit clients working across the arts sector.

Travis McCready, Vice President of Program at the Boston Foundation, welcomed Esposito as a vital addition to the foundation’s program staff in its efforts to serve and help grow the region’s arts community.

“As Director of the Arts at TBF, Allyson will continue to strengthen and celebrate the liveliness of the arts in Boston through full participation, connect with our strong cultural organizations, and elevate the vivacity of our unique arts culture in our city,” McCready said.

Esposito is expected to begin work at the Boston Foundation in mid-August.

 
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The Boston Foundation, Greater Boston’s community foundation, is one of the largest community foundations in the nation, with net assets of some $1 billion. In 2014, the Foundation and its donors made more than $112 million in grants to nonprofit organizations and received gifts of nearly $112 million. In celebration of its centennial in 2015, the Boston Foundation has launched the Campaign for Boston to strengthen the Permanent Fund for Boston, Greater Boston’s only endowment fund supporting organizations focused on the most pressing needs of Greater Boston.  The Foundation is proud to be a partner in philanthropy, with nearly 1,000 separate charitable funds established by donors either for the general benefit of the community or for special purposes.

The Boston Foundation also serves as a major civic leader, provider of information, convener and sponsor of special initiatives that address the region’s most serious challenges. The Philanthropic Initiative (TPI), an operating unit of the Foundation, designs and implements customized philanthropic strategies for families, foundations and corporations around the globe. For more information about the Boston Foundation and TPI, visit www.tbf.org or call 617-338-1700.