PEOPLE

SENIOR STAFF

STAFF

Oral History Research and Transcription Team Allison Baldwin, Paulina Barrios, Christina Briskin, Ainsley Fisher, Lucy Gilch, Lanai McAuley, Hannah M’Lynn, Rebecca Sandoval, Carla Zurita

 

Funders for New Staff Positions

coLAB Arts would like to acknowledge our incredible funders who in 2022 and 2023 have made the following new staff positions possible:

 

Communications Manager

Grant funding has been provided by the Middlesex County Board of County Commissioners. This project is supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts.

 

Development Manager

This position was made possible through funding from the New Jersey Cultural Trust.


BOARD OF DIRECTORS

President - Elise Brancheau

Vice President - Nicole Brownstein

Treasurer - Barry Sherman

Secretary - Erica Nagle

Members - Christina Briskin, Maevonia Caldwell, Monique Coleman, Perry Farhat, Carla Haynes, Carolina Moratti, Jin Hi Rheem, Dan Swern

 

RESIDENT ARTISTS


(l-r) Dr. Jeffrey Longhofer, Dr. Jerry Floersch

In Memoriam

DR. JEFFREY LONGHOFER (Sep 13, 1955-Jan 31, 2023) served as Board President of coLAB Arts during a period of growth and transformation. He and his husband, Dr. Jerry Floersch, who served as Vice President, together oversaw coLAB Arts’ successful mission and vision transition to a socially-engaged arts organization, providing needed financial support and guidance.

Jeffrey was driven by his curiosity, enthusiasm for life’s experiences, and commitment to building a thriving and equitable New Brunswick. He had a great love and appreciation for the visual and performing arts, great food, literature, and interesting architecture. A psychoanalyst, anthropologist, and social worker, he was devoted to his career as a researcher, clinician and teacher, advancing the fields of applied anthropology and social work through his study of the human experience and our capabilities to defeat injustice. 

At the Rutgers School of Social Work, Jeffrey, with Jerry, co-created the Doctor of Social Work program and served as the inaugural director of the Tyler Clementi Center for Diversity Education and Bias Prevention, a reflection of his life-long work against inequality. 

The first education program fundraiser for coLAB Arts was held in Jeffrey and Jerry’s Highland Park backyard. In 2013 and 2014, they organized our first board retreats to the Contemporary American Theater Festival. In 2015, they underwrote “Behind the Moon, Beyond the Rain,” our first major fundraiser, an immersive performance which cemented our mission as a connective tissue between artists, advocates, and communities. We will be forever grateful for Jeffrey and Jerry’s friendship, guidance, vision, and leadership. 

(Photo l-r: Dr. Jeffrey Longhofer, Dr. Jerry Floersch)