Jayne Watson appointed CEO of the National Arts Centre Foundation

Jayne Watson appointed CEO of the National Arts Centre Foundation

Ottawa (Canada) ’Äì The National Arts Centre (NAC) today announced that Jayne Watson has been appointed CEO of the National Arts Centre Foundation, the organization’Äôs fundraising arm.

Ms. Watson is currently NAC Director of Communications and Public Affairs, as well as Corporate Secretary of the NAC Board of Trustees. She will assume her new responsibilities on August 10.

Ms. Watson has more than 20 years of experience as a senior executive, political advisor and consultant. Prior to joining the NAC in 2001, she served as Director of Communications at Export Development Canada, and held senior communications roles the Office of the Speaker of the House of Commons and Canada Post Corporation.

In 2007, Ms. Watson co-chaired the NAC’Äôs strategic planning process and helped write the NAC’Äôs 2008-2013 strategic plan, ’ÄúPerforming for Canadians’Äù. She recently coordinated a major fundraising campaign for the 2009 Governor General’Äôs Performing Arts Awards Gala, raising a record amount from private donors and sponsors.

’ÄúWe considered a number of candidates, but we concluded that Jayne Watson’Äôs remarkable leadership and communications skills, her team building capacity, her energy and enthusiasm, and her recent fundraising success with the Governor General’Äôs Performing Arts Awards Gala made her an exceptional choice,’Äù said Gail O’ÄôBrien, Chair of the NAC Foundation.

Ms. O’ÄôBrien was part of the committee that selected Ms. Watson as the new Foundation CEO, along with Toronto businessman and NAC Foundation Board Vice-Chair Grant Burton, and NAC President and CEO Peter Herrndorf.

’ÄúJayne is extremely talented and has proven she has what it takes to lead the NAC Foundation,’Äù said Mr. Herrndorf. ’ÄúWe are delighted that Jayne will continue her association with Canada’Äôs National Arts Centre in this new capacity.’Äù

Ms. Watson succeeds Darrell Louise Gregersen, who left the position in January 2009 to become head of the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health Foundation in Toronto.

The National Arts Centre Foundation was established in July 2000 and has raised more than $42 million for artistic and educational programming by the National Arts Centre. The Foundation’Äôs mission is to inspire individuals, corporations and foundations to invest in the National Arts Centre’Äôs vision of artistic innovation, development of young talent, and creation of new works, to benefit all Canadians.