"The arts build and connect communities; they are essential in human development. They make a difference in the world and touch the individual. I’m clear about the privilege it is to serve and honor the richness and diversity of people. The arts express that more than anything else I have seen, and that is why I chose this field.."
- Michelle Mac Lennan, Assistant Manager, Chandler Center for the Arts
Fellow Biography
Michelle Mac Lennan’s job as assistant manager for the Chandler Center for the Arts grew out of a passion for theater developed in high school. Through jobs with the John Paul Theatre at Phoenix College, Arizona State University Public Events’ Kerr Cultural Center and the Chandler Center for the Arts, Ms. Mac Lennan has experienced nearly every aspect of theater management. She joined the Chandler Center for the Arts in 1999 as the patron services manager and was promoted to program and event coordinator before leaving for a short stint to serve as the fine arts coordinator for the Tempe Center for the Arts, which is scheduled to open in 2007. She returned to the Chandler Center for the Arts in October 2005 as assistant manager, where she supervises more than 200 volunteers and a staff of 11.
In addition to her duties at the center, Ms. Mac Lennan serves as vice president for the Chandler Cultural Foundation and is the liaison for the City of Chandler and Chandler Unified School District for facility scheduling. Ms. MacLennan has completed coursework at ASU, Mesa Community College and Phoenix College as well as through Landmark Education.
Field Notes
Ms. MacLennan has not completed her fellowship. The following is a short summary of her sabbatical.
Through her Piper Fellowship, Ms. MacLennan seeks to enhance her leadership ability, expand her capacity for long-term planning and implement cutting-edge approaches to patron services and internal communications. Specifically, she will attend the American for the Arts Convention and the International Association of Assembly Managers conference; complete two two-day courses in strategic management and leadership and ethics in the nonprofit sector at the ASU Center for Nonprofit Leadership and Management; and participate in Landmark Education’s three-day seminar “The Advance Communication Course: The Power to Create.” To enhance her presentation and communication skills, Ms. MacLennan plans to attend an intensive one-week course on acting for film at the New York Film Academy.
Contact Information
Michelle MacLennan
Assistant Manager
Chandler Center for the Arts
Vice President, Chandler Cultural Foundation
480.782.2688
michelle.maclennan@chandleraz.gov
www.chandlercenter.org