Meet our 2023-24 Board of Trustees who are passionate about the arts. These leaders from the field have joined forces to help Arts Midwest make a bigger impact.
Dr. Frances Finley
President
Fran spent 35 years in the healthcare field as an executive in the not-for-profit sector in hospitals and health systems in West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Michigan. She completed her BS in Administrative Management at Missouri State University, Master’s in Healthcare Administration at the Washington University School of Medicine, and Doctorate of Healthcare Administration at Central Michigan University. Fran is a member of the Marquette Breakfast Rotary and chairs a committee at the District Level. She and her husband Steve enjoy the outdoors in all seasons, gardening, the arts and music. After retiring from the UP Health System in 2020, Fran and Steve moved to a lake in Gwinn, where they enjoy their time together.
Cole Williams
Vice President
Cole was born with music in his blood. His father, an Academy Award, Golden Globe, and Grammy-winning songwriter, exposed him to music from an early age, but it was the theatre that called to him. Cole attended the acting conservatory at Purchase College, State University of New York and pursued a career in Television and Film. After several years of acting in his hometown of Los Angeles, he focused on becoming a personal chef, founding a personal training gym, and opening the first West Coast studios for Soul Cycle. Today he and his wife Emily, a Marquette native and a talented violinist, are the co-founders of two Marquette businesses, RADD Foods and Got George. When Cole isn’t working hard with his wife, you can find him in the gym, on a run, at the dog park with his Cavalier King Charles Spaniel “Ivy,” or in the kitchen at home cooking for family and friends.
Tristan Luoma
Secretary
Tristan joined the Marquette Symphony Orchestra Board in July 2020 after serving as the Business Manager for the 2017-18 season, and has been an active Communications Committee member. Tristan holds a Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of Michigan. Currently, he works as Arts & Senior Services Coordinator for the City of Marquette and Director of Art on the Rocks. He serves on boards and committees for the Marquette Area Sister Cities Partnership, Hiawatha Music Co-op, and Masonic Arts, Theatre, and Innovation Company (MÄTI).
Nina Nelson
Treasurer
Originally from Sault Ste Marie, Michigan, Nina is a Senior Accountant for Upper Peninsula Health Plan in Marquette, with over 12 years of professional booking experience. She graduated Summa Cum Laude from Northern Michigan University, earning a Bachelor’s degree in Corporate Finance and Risk Management. At Northern, she was a member of Beta Alpha Psi, an international honor organization for accounting, finance, and information systems for students and professionals. Nina is also the Treasurer for Messiah Lutheran Church. Whether on the trails, downtown Marquette or anywhere in the U. P., she can be found volunteering or participating in local events all season.
Andrew LaCombe
Past President
Andrew joined the board in July 2017 and the cello section as a sophomore at Marquette Senior High School. He holds a Bachelor of Music degree in cello performance from Lawrence University. Andrew works as Assistant News Director and Morning News Anchor at WLUC-TV6 in Marquette and teaches private cello lessons at Jim’s Music in Marquette. Andrew is also a member of the U.P. Children’s Museum Board of Directors, the Salvation Army of Marquette County Advisory Board, and the Friends of Camp Batawagama Board of Directors.
Erin Colwitz, D.M.A.
Erin Colwitz is an Associate Professor of Music and Director of Choral Activities at Northern Michigan University, where she conducts the Arts Chorale and the University Choir.
Her choirs have toured Finland, Austria, Poland, and various venues in the United States and were chosen to sing at both Michigan and Alabama educators’ conferences. Dr. Colwitz is a frequent guest conductor, lecturer, contest adjudicator and choral clinician throughout the United States.
She earned her Master of Music and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees from the University of Southern California in choral music. As a singer, Dr. Colwitz toured internationally with the award-winning Thornton Chamber Choir; sang with the Pacific Symphony and the Los Angeles Philharmonic; and can be heard on three albums of the Grammy-nominated Dale Warland Singers.
Jacob Schmeltzer
Jacob Schmeltzer is the Director of Bands at Negaunee Public Schools and is one of this year’s (2022) Outstanding Educators. Jacob has been playing trumpet with the Marquette Symphony Orchestra since 2017 and performs with the Marquette City Band, Negaunee City Band, and the Westerly Winds Big Band. He joined the MSO board in 2020.
Theresa Camilli, PhD
Theresa earned her doctorate in piano pedagogy from the University of Oklahoma, a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology and a Bachelor of Music degree in Music Therapy from Loyola University in New Orleans. She completed her Master's degree in Music Therapy at the University of Iowa and has worked as a board-certified Music Therapist. Theresa has extensive collegiate teaching experience at South Carolina, the University of Northern Iowa, Alverno College and the Wisconsin Conservatory in Milwaukee. Theresa continues to be invited to present and adjudicate at the local, regional, and national levels. Theresa enjoys teaching students of all ages and abilities in group and private settings. She currently teaches applied and group piano at Northern Michigan University and accompanies student recitals.
Andra Sullivan
Andra has been a performer with the MSO for 14 years and the Marquette City Band for 30 years, on Flute, Piccolo and Piano. She was raised in Gladstone, MI and graduated from Northern Michigan University with a BS in Music. She has two wonderful children with her husband, John. She has taught students piano and flute privately for 30 years. Although these achievements are well appreciated, she feels that her greatest satisfaction is observing students grow and prosper, some obtain advanced degrees in music, and she feels students are the future of the symphony orchestra. Andra is thankful for the opportunities our community has provided her.