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New Director Charts Course of Accessibility, Diversity, for Oregon Council for the Humanities (July 17, 2007)

Cara Ungar-Gutierrez has already taken steps to change the culture of the 36-year-old organization.

In her first 100 days as executive director of the Oregon Council for the Humanities (OCH), Cara Ungar-Gutierrez has met daily with a wide variety of Oregonians, from members of the state's cultural and philanthropic communities to inmates at Eastern Oregon Correctional Institution in Pendleton and representatives of the state's minority communities--all while learning the ins and outs of the nonprofit she took charge of in March.

But for Ungar-Gutierrez--who is the third director, and the first woman, to head the 36-year-old independent, nonprofit affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH)--being out in the community and talking to people about OCH and the humanities is essential to changing the culture of the long-lived organization so that it can benefit more Oregonians.

Ungar-Gutierrez is part of the recent wave of leadership transitions in Oregon's nonprofit community. This mirrors the findings of an Annie E. Casey Foundation report showing that 65 percent of nonprofit organizations polled in 2004 expected leadership shifts by 2009 and that 57 percent had experienced such shifts since 1994.

"This shift is powerfully underway in Portland," she says, referring in particular to changes in leadership at the Portland Art Museum, Oregon Historical Society, and Literary Arts over the last few years. "This provides the city with an opportunity to reassess the work of the nonprofit sector as well as the meaning and practice of leadership. It's a chance to consider how this next generation of leaders can more fairly represent the area's diverse communities."

Though Ungar-Gutierrez has a Ph.D. in rhetoric, a discipline steeped in the study of Western classics, she believes that the ideas and approaches offered by the humanities and its myriad disciplines--including literature, history, architecture, philosophy, and cultural anthropology--are very much relevant to contemporary society.

"The humanities are traditionally defined as a group of academic disciplines," she says. "I find it more useful to imagine the humanities as a tool that can help us think about and respond to the world. They can help us confront questions of race, class, gender, and identity in ways that are disorienting and even uncomfortable, but also important and life-changing."

Noting examples of hot-button current events topics such as poverty, immigration, land-use, and native-nonnative relations, all of which recent OCH programs and publications have tackled, she says, "By encouraging thoughtful reflection and lively discussions, the humanities can, in a very real way, illuminate and help make sense of the issues that people deal with on a daily basis."

For Ungar-Gutierrez, who was born the year before the council was established by the NEH, having face-to-face conversations with other community members is essential to improving access to and understanding of the humanities, as well as to creating useful partnerships.

The OCH board of directors--which includes representatives from all corners of the state and from all professional fields, including the business community, academic institutions, and the nonprofit sector--has been instrumental in forging these ties and moving the organization forward.

Jill Powers Kirk, OCH board chair and vice president of the Oregon Business Council, says, "The success and growth of the Council is based on the best work that the board and the executive director can do--together more than separately. That's what Cara is working to develop, and we fully support her efforts."

Ungar-Gutierrez adds that she is indebted to the foundation laid by the two previous executive directors, Dick Lewis and Christopher Zinn, which, she says, makes it easier to expand the council's accessibility and reach. She has also solicited help from development and nonprofit consultants to assist her in assessing the organization and charting a course for its future.

OCH receives no financial support from the state, except for what it receives as a partner of the Oregon Cultural Trust, the statewide plan that raises funds to invest in Oregon's arts, humanities, and heritage. OCH's annual operating budget is just over $1 million, 50 percent of which comes directly from the NEH.

Prior to taking the helm at OCH, Ungar-Gutierrez served as Director of Education at the Oregon Historical Society for four years. In that capacity, she collaborated with community partners, including the Portland Art Museum, Portland Youth Philharmonic, City Club of Portland, Oregon Zoo, Oregon Jewish Museum, State Historic Preservation Office, and Oregon Heritage Commission. Ungar-Gutierrez, who has a Ph.D. in composition and rhetoric from Miami University in Ohio and a certificate in nonprofit management from Columbia University also has extensive teaching, research, fundraising, management, and community service experience.

To arrange an interview with Cara Ungar-Gutierrez, please contact Sarah Van Winkle, Executive Assistant, at (503) 241-0543, (800) 735-0543, or svanwinkle@oregonhum.org

For more information about OCH or to receive a high-resolution headshot of Cara Ungar-Gutierrez, please contact Kathleen Holt, Communications Director, at (503) 241-0543 or kholt@oregonhum.org.