Creative Campus is driven by a team of seasoned experts who bring experience in the creative economy, real estate, social impact, investment strategy, legal services, and administration.
Jim Grace is the Executive Director of the Arts & Business Council of Greater Boston. He was the Executive Director of the Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts of Mass. from 1998 until 2008, when it merged with the A&BC. Jim has extensive experience working with artists and arts organizations in the areas of public art and social practice art projects, copyright, estate / legacy planning for artists, nonprofit incorporation and mergers, and nonprofit boards. Jim is the founder of the Creative Campus initiative with the goal of preserving safe, affordable, permanent, and more equitable spaces where art is made, rehearsed, and shared.
Hope manages the day to day workings of Western Avenue’s community of 360+ creatives as well as developing and supporting connections and programs geared toward the growth of the artist community.
Luke manages the Arts & Business Council’s legal programs. An attorney himself, he helps artists, creative start-ups, and arts nonprofits manage legal issues involving copyright, trademark, contract, entity formation, and corporate governance. He frequently speaks to groups of artists on art law issues and has recently presented to the Americans for the Arts, the City of Boston, and students at Brown University, RISD, MassArt, and Lesley University.
Carol Caruso is a seasoned social impact entrepreneur, investor, and advisor, with over two decades of global expertise in social impact and economic inclusion. Having co-founded an Inclusive Fintech startup, she’s a trailblazer in leveraging innovative tech for social good and local community development. Currently, Carol serves as a social impact strategy consultant for multiple Impact Funds and startups, advises MIT Sandbox Accelerator and Impact Entrepreneur, and sits on investment committees and boards for various Impact Funds and startups. Her prior roles at Harvard Kennedy School’s Impact Accelerator and leadership positions at Accion International and Triple Jump underline her commitment to scaling businesses driving healthcare, education, clean energy, social justice, and inclusive finance worldwide. Carol’s diverse background spans Europe, US, Africa, Asia, and LATAM, fortified by having attended UC Berkeley’s Master’s program in Business Management and a B.S. in Economics & Finance from UC Santa Barbara.
Steve Pratt-Otto has worked for more than 30 years to bring debt and equity capital to some of the most impactful and visible community development projects in Massachusetts. As a commercial lender, Steve originated more than $750 million of high-quality commercial projects in the course of his banking career. In addition to debt, he underwrote and closed a portfolio of tax credit investments for solar energy and affordable housing. Steve initiated much of the commercial-scale solar financing in Massachusetts. Steve holds an MBA from Boston University, an MFA from New York University, and a BA from Colorado College.
Peter is the Founder & Principal of Geah, Ltd., a boutique consulting firm that develops and implements strategic brand communications platforms and programs. He has worked for over 65 cultural, civic, educational, and governmental agencies and corporations, as well as architects and designers, involving the arts, cultural policy, sponsorship, board and program development, and brand communications nationally and internationally. During his 30+ year career in New York, he created and executed strategic communications campaigns for the opening of over 20 cultural facilities and expansion throughout the United States and Europe.
Matt McArthur founded and ran The Record Co., a nonprofit community music workspace, for 14 years during which time he grew TRC from an idea into a multi-facility, multi-million dollar operation serving more than 4,500 music makers every month. A singer songwriter turned cultural real estate developer, Matt brings a track record of successful design, construction, and operation of cultural spaces and the fundraising expertise needed to bring projects to life.
Kevin has led many of the firm’s most successful and complex performing arts projects. His efforts at Duke University’s Rubenstein Arts Center, Pennsylvania State University’s Recital Hall, UVA’s Ruth Caplin Theater, and Tanglewood’s Linde Center for Music and Learning have garnered national acclaim, including three National AIA Interior Architecture Honor Awards and four United States Institute for Theatre Technology Architecture Awards. Recently, Kevin’s projects at Virginia Commonwealth University and Rochester Institute of Technology have focused on major arts and ‘making’ complexes that push the boundaries of radical interdisciplinarity by exploring the ways transparency, flexible use studios, and inter-departmental collaboration can foster new avenues of learning and innovation within higher education and the arts. Kevin is Graduate of the University of Maryland (M.Arch ’94, B.S.Arch. ’92).
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