Meet Christine,

one of our Senior Consultants.

Christine Chen (she/her) is a professional dancer turned nonprofit executive turned consultant with a record of leading cultural and performing arts organizations; producing educational and artistic programming; and managing and supporting nonprofits through major organizational crises and change. Drawing on her lived experiences in  in the arts, transformational change management, and leadership development, Christine approaches every project with deep empathy, humility and respect for the unique individuals and organizations working towards a more just and equitable world. She is energized by the possibility of exploring and creating positive impact, value, and joy.

Christine is the former executive director of two premiere dance organizations — STREB Inc., which she led through the pandemic, and American Repertory Ballet, which she led through a major artistic director change and the 2009 recession. She also worked as the Director of Strategic Programming, Dance and Adult Programming for the 92nd Street Y, New York. With over 20 years of experience working in the nonprofit sector, 12 of which were spent in senior leadership positions, she has deep competencies in quantitative data analysis, business strategy and execution, and, above all, an adaptive, creative spirit and a thirst to tackle seemingly impossible challenges.

She currently serves on Princeton University’s Lewis Arts Center Advisory Council and has served as a grants panelist for NYC’s Department of Cultural Affairs, New York State Council on the Arts, Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Impact Approach	Christine is particularly passionate about working with organizations who are curious and open to adapting and evolving so they can best achieve their goals in our ever-changing world. Christine believes that organizational impact can take infinite forms and that progress towards helping a client achieve their greatest mission impact is made through clear communication and inclusion of diverse voices, by nurturing equity and a healthy organizational culture, gracefully clearing obstacles to change, and collaboratively clarifying a vision and a way forward.
Education	University of California, Davis ‒ M.B.A. Ohio State University ‒ M.F.A., Dance Princeton University ‒ B.A., Sociology; Certificates (minors) in Theater and Dance and Gender and Sexuality Studies (formerly Women’s Studies)
Select Clients	Select Publications
Ford Foundation Grail Family Services Lawyers for Creative Arts New York Theatre Ballet Piedmont East Bay Children’s Choir	Navigating Succession Planning A 25th Anniversary Interview: Rainforest Alliance
“The practitioner in me enjoys getting my hands dirty—experiencing and engaging viscerally with the complexity of the on-the-ground details—while the manager in me relishes a wider lens of context, systems and strategy. These complementary facets have helped me compassionately lead organizations through major disruptions”
Outside of Work	Christine enjoys spending time getting dirty outdoors — hiking, biking, swimming in open waters, or simply chopping and stacking wood. Whenever she can, she enjoys keeping up her repertory of tricks (and creating new ones) on the flying trapeze and continuing her practice of other aerial arts.