Mass Cultural Council outlines community-centered search and timeline for next executive director

Chair Ché Anderson told the Council on May 19 that the Mass Cultural Council will lead a community-centered search for a new Executive Director, proposing a Search Task Force made up primarily of external agency partners, community stakeholders and regional leaders supported by a professional executive search firm. He said the process is intended to promote transparency, broaden perspectives and identify candidates with collaborative leadership experience in fields such as education, healthcare, workforce development, government and philanthropy.

"The organization is fortunate to have such an outstanding team," Anderson said, urging members to think broadly about the Council's future and to prepare both systemically and operationally for accelerated work when conditions improve.

Anderson outlined a phased calendar that begins with task force formation and search firm selection in June, stakeholder engagement and leadership-profile development in July, active national recruitment and screening from August through October, finalist interviews and Council selection in October and early November, and announcement and transition planning in December with a January start expected.

Council members pressed for clarity on the process. Diane Asadorian Masters asked how the Council would proceed if it were interested in Anderson himself for the role; Anderson said his priority as Chair is ensuring a fair, transparent and inclusive process. Tom Bernard urged explicit regional equity and representation on the Task Force and recommended a clear job description and defined roles for members of the Task Force. Julie Wake supported regional equity while cautioning against an oversized Task Force and suggested structured, smaller engagements so broader community voices can participate without making the full Task Force unwieldy.

Anderson also described early outreach he had conducted with cultural leaders in Worcester to surface region-specific priorities and encouraged other Council members to hold similar conversations in their regions.

Next steps, as Anderson described them, are formation of the Search Task Force, selection of a search firm, stakeholder engagement in July, national recruitment and screening in late summer and fall, finalist interviews in October–November, and transition planning toward a January onboarding.