Jedlinski, Filippini-Fantoni, Riley, Rodriguez, Garvey, Sen

Jason Jedlinski, a veteran broadcasting and publishing executive, will become WQED’s next president and CEO. He arrives from Washington, D.C., where he was general manager of The Hill, launching a new streaming channel and setting audience records. He has spent nearly 25 years growing digital reach and engagement for The Wall Street Journal, USA TODAY and WGN television in Chicago. Jedlinski is a past board member of the Local Media Association and past president of the largest chapter of the Society of Professional Journalism. He has designed and led groundbreaking digital transformation initiatives, secured multimillion-dollar sponsorships, and successfully launched new products that attracted several hundred thousand subscribers.

Silvia Filippini-Fantoni has been appointed as the Richard M. Scaife Director/CEO of The Westmoreland Museum of American Art. She has over 20 years of experience in the museum field, with expertise in art, education, interpretation, and community engagement. Filippini-Fantoni was formerly deputy director, Learning and Engagement, at The Newark Museum of Art, where she implemented technology-based participatory experiences and strengthened the museum’s community ties, resulting in a 30 percent increase in visitor diversity. Previously, she held positions at the North Carolina Museum of Art and the Indianapolis Museum of Art. Born in the Medieval Italian town of Bergamo, Filippini-Fantoni has a Ph.D. in aesthetics and art sciences from The Sorbonne in Paris and a history degree from the University of Milan. In recognition of her contributions to the museum industry, she was honored as one of the Blooloop 50 Museum Influencers in 2020.

Karen Riley is the president of Slippery Rock University. Previously, Riley was provost and chief academic officer at Regis University in Denver, where she focused on excellence in teaching, advancing research, offering relevant programs and stackable credentials. Before joining Regis, Riley was dean of the College of Education at the University of Denver from 2014 to 2021. During that time, Riley launched a Center for Professional Development to provide certificates and stackable credentials. She has a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Colorado State University, a Master of Arts in early childhood special education and a Ph.D. in educational psychology from the University of Denver. An expert in neurodevelopmental disorders, Riley has researched approaches to addressing societal issues and improving the lives of those affected by Fragile X syndrome and Down syndrome.

Raymond Rodriguez is the first dean of the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre School, joining PBT from The Joffrey Ballet in Chicago, where he was the Academy Director. Rodriguez has experience as a dancer, répétiteur, associate artistic director, managing director and ballet school arts administrator. He trained in classical ballet at the American Ballet Theatre prior to joining the Cleveland Ballet (Ballet San Jose), where he became a principal dancer and later assumed artistic management and directing roles. Rodriguez earned a Master of Fine Arts in dance from Hollins University. He is the founding co-artistic director of Pointe of Departure, Cleveland’s classical ballet company. His awards include an Isadora Duncan Award (Izzie), Crain’s Chicago Business Notable LGBTQ Executive and the National Association of Latino Arts and Culture’s Outstanding Achievement in the Arts award.

Aaron Levi Garvey is the chief curator for The Andy Warhol Museum. He was the Janet L. Nolan Director of Curatorial Affairs at the Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art at Auburn University in Auburn, Ala.; the chief curator and vice chair of programs at The Hudson Eye/Jonah Bokaer Arts Foundation in New York; and the co-founder and board advisor of Long Road Projects Foundation Inc. in Jacksonville, Fla. and Erie, Pa. A Jewish-American curator, his work primarily focuses on the cross-section of contemporary art, culture and community-building. As an independent curator, Garvey curated exhibitions and public programs for The Contemporary Art Center of New Orleans and the Hirshhorn Museum, among others. He has a Bachelor’s degree in art history from the University of North Florida in Jacksonville, and a Master’s in art administration/museum administration from the University of Kentucky.

Chandan Sen, an expert in regenerative medicine and pioneer of novel wound care technologies, will join the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and UPMC as professor of surgery, with a secondary appointment in the Department of Plastic Surgery. He will also hold leadership roles as associate vice chancellor for life sciences innovation and commercialization and the newly established positions of co-director of the McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine at Pitt and chief scientific officer of UPMC Wound Healing Services. Sen comes to Pitt from Indiana University, where he was associate vice president and dean of research at the School of Medicine and executive director of the Comprehensive Wound Center at IU Health. He will bring more than two dozen faculty, postdoctoral associates and staff from IU with him. A native of Kolkata, India, Sen earned a Master of Science in human physiology from the University of Calcutta and a Ph.D. in physiology from the University of Eastern Finland.