Sarah George

Sarah B. George, Ph.D, is the Executive Director of the Natural History Museum of Utah and Adjunct Professor of Biology at the University of Utah. Working in museums since she was an undergraduate at the University of Puget Sound, she received her M.S. at Fort Hays State University in western Kansas, and her Ph.D. at the University of New Mexico as a field biologist, mammalogist, and evolutionary geneticist. After completing graduate school in 1984, she was Curator of Mammals at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, also holding adjunct faculty appointments in the biology departments at USC and UCLA. 

Since moving to Utah in 1992, Sarah and her team of staff and board developed a $103M new building, exhibits, and landscape for the Natural History Museum of Utah—the Rio Tinto Center, which opened in 2011. The new Museum is LEED©-Gold certified and has won more than 30 regional, national, and international awards for architecture, engineering, materials, construction safety, dark sky design, exhibitions, media, and public art. The Museum provides science education outreach and small exhibits to rural communities statewide, serving almost 500,000 people annually both on and off-site. 

The new Museum is home to more than 1.6 million objects; research and training programs for the University of Utah in paleontology, archaeology, botany, and zoology; innovative new exhibits and learning laboratories. In partnership with six colleges at the University of Utah, the Museum is expanding its faculty in the areas of biodiversity, learning research, and data visualization in an initiative to promote better public understanding of the importance of biodiversity and the impacts of its loss. 

In 2012, Sarah was recognized as a Pathfinder by the Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce, in 2013, she was awarded the Director's Chair by the Western Museums Association, and in 2016, she received the Governor's Medal for Science and Technology. She serves on the boards of the Natural Science Collections Alliance and the Association of Science-Technology Centers and is President of the Association of Science Museum Directors. 

Anna Mansbridge

Anna Mansbridge, Artistic Director of Kaleidoscope Dance Company, choreographer, dancer, and teacher, is originally from the U.K and now resides in Seattle, WA. She holds a First Class Honors Degree in Dance and Education from Bedford College, U.K and an M.F.A in Choreography and Performance from Mills College, CA. She has been on the faculty at the Creative Dance Center since the Fall of 1999 teaching all ages. She has created many dances for Kaleidoscope Dance Company and co-directed the company with Anne Green Gilbert for 5 years before taking over the Directorship upon Anne’s retirement in July 2014. In addition, Anna is the Founder (in 2000) and Artistic Director of Seattle Early Dance, a company dedicated to recreating dances from the Renaissance and Baroque periods. Her directing/choreographing credits include Rappresentatione di Anima et di Corpo by Emilio De’ Cavalieri (1600), The Indian Queen by Henry Purcell (1695),  La liberazione di Ruggiero dall’isola d’Alcina (1625), and Wayward Sisters, an evening of dance and song from seventeenth century Italy. Most recently Anna was the choreographer for Christoph Gluck’s Orphée et Eurydice (1774) presented by UW School of Music and Pacific MusicWorks at Meany Theater. 

Paul Meecham

Paul Meecham joined Utah Symphony | Utah Opera as President and CEO in July 2016.  A musician by training, he has occupied leadership positions in the classical music industry during the last 25 years in London, San Francisco, New York, Seattle, and Baltimore.  As president and CEO of USUO, Mr. Meecham leads the largest arts organization in the Intermountain West. The Utah Symphony, one of fifteen 52-week orchestras in the United States, performs more than 185 concerts each season. In recent years it has released several acclaimed new recordings under music director Thierry Fischer, and in April 2016 performed at Carnegie Hall as part of the orchestra’s 75th anniversary celebrations. Utah Opera, which celebrated its 40th anniversary season in 2017-18, mounts four full-scale opera productions each year in addition to creating sets and costumes for companies throughout North America at its state-of-the-art production studios in Salt Lake City. The organization also produces the summer Deer Valley® Music Festival in Park City, Utah and boasts an extensive state-wide music education program that is considered one of the most robust in the nation. A focus under his leadership is expanding the engagement of USUO with the community through more diverse offerings, with an emphasis on attracting families.

During his decade as President and CEO of Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (2006-2016) Mr. Meecham led the BSO, in partnership with Music Director Marin Alsop, in pursuing innovative strategies to redefine the role of the American orchestra in the 21st century, combining an entrepreneurial spirit with fiscal responsibility. Initiatives increased the BSO’s relevance within the community, including the ground-breaking inner-city schools program OrchKids, adult amateur participation programs including  ‘Rusty Musicians’ and the BSO Academy, and affordable ticket pricing based on a highly successful $25 subscription pricing model that has increased access and attendance. During his tenure, the BSO enjoyed a regular presence at Carnegie Hall, resumed touring in the 2011-12 season with a West Coast tour, and issued several commercial recordings to acclaim.

As executive director for the Seattle Symphony Orchestra (2003-2006), Mr. Meecham launched the first-ever Seattle Symphony national radio broadcast series and a series of commercial recordings of American music on the Naxos label. He increased the Symphony’s commitment to family programming and community outreach, and worked closely with Maestro Gerard Schwarz on the two highly-acclaimed Made in America festivals.

Mr. Meecham was general manager of the New York Philharmonic (1999-2003) and San Francisco Symphony (1997-1999). While in New York he managed a busy national and international touring program, and secured the safe return of the Philharmonic to New York, after the orchestra was stranded in Germany on September 11, 2001. In San Francisco, he was a key figure in the ground-breaking six-year labor agreement with the players, following an 11-week work stoppage in 1996.

As managing director of the London Sinfonietta for six years beginning in 1991, Mr. Meecham restored the ensemble’s position as the preeminent European 20th-century music orchestra, increasing international demand for concerts, touring and recording. He commissioned works by leading composers including John Adams and Steve Reich, and created a festival of new American music. During his tenure, the London Sinfonietta was the 1997 winner of the London Evening Standard award for outstanding ensemble.

A pianist and violinist, Paul Meecham graduated with a bachelor’s degree in music. After a career in music publishing as head of publicity at the London firm of Boosey & Hawkes, he moved into orchestra management in 1988, as head of marketing at the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra.

Geoffrey Cockerham

Geoffrey Cockerham is Associate Professor of Political Science at Utah Valley University. Dr. Cockerham received his Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Arizona with a specialization in international relations. He also received a J.D. degree from Louisiana State University. His research and teaching interests include global health, international cooperation, international institutions, international law and global governance. His most recent publication is Global Governance and Public Health (Rowman and Littlefield International 2018).