Staff Bios

Jack Walsh, Executive Director
email: jack (at) namac.org

Jack Walsh possesses a life-long commitment to independent media and supporting the organizations that work on behalf of independent film and video makers.  After completing film school at San Francisco State University, he worked for maverick independent filmmaker Peter Adair before taking the position as Executive Director of the legendary Collective for Living Cinema in New York.  Returning to the Bay Area in the 90s, Jack became Series Producer of the innovative public television series Living Room Festival, worked as Station Manager of KTOP, Oakland’s government channel, and as an Executive Producer at San Francisco public television station KQED.

Prior to becoming Executive Director at the National Alliance for Media Arts and Culture (NAMAC), Jack was the Capital Campaign Manager for the 9th Street Independent Film Center, an innovative cross-sector collaboration that enabled four nonprofit organizations to buy and renovate a building in San Francisco’s SOMA district.  Since joining NAMAC, Jack has overseen three national conferences (Taking Liberties, 2005; The Frontier is Here, 2007; and CommonWealth, 2009) as well as regional convenings, leadership development, and capacity building programs.  He is the principal investigator of Mapping the Field: A National Survey of Media Arts Organizations, which he launched in 2010.

An award-winning independent filmmaker and producer, Jack’s works have screened around the world at film festivals and through broadcast.  His current project, Feelings Are Facts: The Life of Yvonne Rainer is a feature length documentary about the pioneering choreographer and filmmaker.

Daniel "Dewey" Schott, Senior Manager of Leadership Services
email: dan (at) namac.org

Dewey Schott is the Senior Manager of Leadership Services at NAMAC and a certified personal and private coach who is passionate about helping leaders soar to new heights. He considers himself part punk, part mystic, and part organizational development nerd. Dewey leads NAMAC’s peer coaching circles, edited NAMAC's Leading Creatively anthology of current issues in leadership in the arts, and develops many other professional development programs and services for arts leaders. In 2008, he co-researched “next generation” leadership in California arts for The James Irvine Foundation. Dewey regularly presents panels and workshops on leadership and coaching in the arts at Americans for the Arts and other conferences.

Belinda Rawlins, Policy Strategist
email: belinda (at) namac.org

Belinda has been active in the community media and technology movement for over 25 years. She started out at an all-volunteer radio station in Cincinnati, Ohio, where she programmed a late night radio show for 18 years and began to understand the importance of community based media in society.

She began her career in non-profit work at the Cincinnati Art Museum and moved on to Media Bridges Cincinnati, which she transformed from a traditional public access television model into a media arts education center. Later, Belinda took on a transitional role as the Executive Director of the New Mexico Media Literacy Project, helping to strengthen the organization during the founding director’s retirement.

Drawn back to community radio, Belinda’s next moved to Northern California to head up Mendocino County Public Broadcasting, a rural community radio network with six facilities, three frequencies, and 125 volunteers.  In 2008, she returned to the east coast and became the Executive Director of the Transmission Project where she also works. Here she works with media and technology non-profits across the nation to build their capacity to better serve their communities.

Belinda is trained as a facilitator in the Technology of Participation and as an Interim Executive Leader. She continues her work as a volunteer programmer, hosting her weekly radio show, Bubbles in the Think Tank.

Belinda also serves as the Field Director for Prometheus Radio Project's LPFM Outreach Campaign.

Rachel Allen, Online Community Manager
email: rachel (at) namac.org

Rachel is interested in the ways in which people use media and technology to tell stories and build relationships. She started out as a film nerd and aspiring journalist. After working for CBS News, as well as for The Late Show with David Letterman and other television projects, Rachel started to understand the value of public media. Before joining NAMAC, Rachel served as a Technology Coordinator for the Center for Architecture in New York. Rachel's interests include fan art, serial narrative, and things she finds on YouTube.

Rachel has a B.A. with honors in English from Oberlin College. She serves NAMAC through the Digital Arts Service Corps VISTA program.
 

Brittany Sims, Administrative Assistant
brittany (at) namac.org

Brittany has a colorful background in the realm of media arts and communication. Starting out as a make-up artist for television and film in Los Angeles, Brittany¹s interest in media management grew. During college Brittany held multiple media-related communications positions including Regional Public Relations Intern for HBO and Conference Intern for NAMAC's 2009 Commonwealth conference. Since earning her bachelor¹s degree in Radio and Television from San Francisco State University, Brittany has rejoined our team. Motivated to develop her media management skills, Brittany is currently an MBA student at Mills College.