Humanities Washington Staff

Associate Director
Lydia joined Humanities Washington in 2003 as Program Officer for Literacy and Community Programs, encompassing both the Inquiring Mind Speakers’ Bureau and the Motheread/Fatheread family literacy program.  Under Lydia’s guidance, the Motheread/Fatheread program grew significantly, with over 500 facilitators trained statewide, and 150 active program partners in the greater Puget Sound area and around the state.  Lydia leads fundraising activities for Motheread/Fatheread and in 2004 secured a record gift of $150,000 from the PacifiCorp Foundation for Learning for program expansion in Yakima and Walla Walla Counties.  Currently Lydia is leading Humanities Washington’s “Community Conversations” initiative, while remaining involved with Family Reading programs and fundraising.  She lives in Ballard with her family, including daughters Lucy (11) and Tessa (9).

Program Assistant
A lifelong native of the Seattle area, Seth recently graduated with a B.A. in Communication from the University of Washington. Seth got his first experience in the nonprofit world as a student, where he worked at the Simpson Center for the Humanities on the University campus. During his senior year in college, he worked as an intern in the Sales Department at the Seattle Mariners. Then, after graduating, he worked as a Marketing Assistant for a downtown law firm. Seth left this job after several months, deciding he wanted to return to the more fulfilling nonprofit sector, and since February 2008 has been the Program Assistant at Humanities Washington, working with the Grants and Inquiring Mind programs.

Executive Director
Prior to joining Humanities Washington, Ted served as a partner in the Philanthropy Northwest's Giving Practice for five years, where his work as a philanthropic advisor included multi-year change initiatives with the giving programs at Starbucks and Microsoft. He recently served as the Interim Director for the Masters program in Not-For-Profit Leadership and Social Enterprise Management at Seattle University, where he still teaches. Ted has been a leader in promoting philanthropy in the Northwest, working most closely with social justice organizations. He has also worked directly with dozens of nonprofits on planning and leadership issues. In his eight-year tenure as CEO of the Pride Foundation, he oversaw the Foundation's growth from a regional organization to a national leader: he increased the foundation's annual disbursement of grants and scholarships from $35,000 to $500,000, and built its endowment commitments to over $6 million; during that time, the foundation's number of participating annual donors grew from 300 to 5,000. He currently serves on the Board of United Way of King County. In 1999, the Greater Seattle Business Association named Ted its "Community Leader of the Year". Ted is also a practicing poet whose work appears in over forty journals.  

Director of Finance and Administration
Eric was born and raised in Big Sky country, on the wide open plains of north central Montana in an area chronically underserved by the arts and humanities, thus creating an early curiosity and appreciation. He began his business career at Ernst & Young in San Diego, California after graduating with a B.S. in Accounting from San Diego State University.  After relocating to San Francisco and spending another year with the firm, Eric left Ernst & Young to take a financial analyst position at a major pharmaceutical company.  A few years later, he decided to take a sabbatical from his accounting career to do some self examination and travel.  This journey landed him in Berlin, Germany teaching business English, back in San Diego doing light construction, and finally in the Pacific Northwest, managing the finances of a Seattle magazine store and espresso bar.  With the decision to pursue a more personally fulfilling accounting career, Eric now focuses his energies only on the not-for-profit sector.  The opportunity to utilize his business talents in organizations that creatively impact the lives of others has given his career meaning that had been lacking.

Program Director: Grants and Exhibits
Ellen joins us from the Washington State History Museum, where she served as Curator of Public Programs from 2000, and as an Education Curator from 1996-2000. Ellen holds a Master's Degree in Not-for-Profit Management from Seattle University, a Master's in Museology from the University of Washington, and a BA in Art History from Mount Holyoke College. She interned at the Seattle Art Museum and the Children's Museum of Manhattan. Ellen currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Washington Museum Association.

Development Assistant
Kathy hails from the San Francisco Bay Area raised by two parents who were avid fans of the arts: music, books, art and theater. Greatly nurtured by this she began her actor training at the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco at 15 and received her BA in Theater at Whitman College in ‘98. She came to Seattle after graduating to pursue her career in Theater and fell in love with Seattle and the Puget Sound. Forgoing the idea of moving to New York or Los Angeles to further her acting career, she shifted her focus to Arts Management and got her certificate in Arts Management at the University of Washington. After some small jobs at nonprofit arts organizations, she landed at the INTIMAN Theatre as Development Associate and is pleased to now find herself at Humanities Washington, supporting the humanities all over Washington State, her adopted home.

Manager of Communications and Technology
Originally from West Virginia, Scott made the big move to Seattle in 1995 after graduating from Oberlin College with a B.A. in History. Since then, he's worked in the dot-com and non-profit worlds as a computer technician. In 2005 he left his job as a system administrator to pursue his lifelong passion, music and songwriting full time. After a year and a half of performing and writing, he's thrilled to be at Humanities Washington, overseeing the technology, website, & database needs working on the Humanities Courier newsletter and assisting with the grants program. He lives in Ballard with his fiancee and two Abysinnian Tabby cats.

Manager of Family Reading Programs
Liv graduated from Gonzaga University with a B.A. in Political Science and a minor in Psychology.  With a passion for public policy issues, Liv spent 2 years interning for Senator Maria Cantwell and working with immigration casework. As a Minnesota native, in Minneapolis she greatly enjoyed working with Open Your Heart to the Hungry and Homeless where she focused on community development and relations.  She has also worked with the Minnesota Literacy Council as an AmeriCorps VISTA, specifically working as a teaching assistant and tutor for Minneapolis inner-city elementary schools.  From 2005-2006 Liv was our AmeriCorps Literacy Outreach Coordinator, and she is so pleased to be able to continue her work with the Family Reading and Literacy Programs that Humanities Washington supports around the state.