Staff
ENDOWMENT CAMPAIGN COORDINATOR
Cheryl Durbas relocated to Maine in 2006 from Richmond, Virginia. Prior to moving to Maine, Cheryl spent six years as the Director of Development of an independent college prep school for learning disabled students. She brings over 15 years of fundraising and public relations experience to her work at the Center. Cheryl lives in Union with her husband, Erik, and their two fuzzy children Wally and Cleo (dog and cat). When not renovating their home, Cheryl and Erik enjoy cooking, kayaking and hiking Maine trails.
ASSISTANT FACILITIES MANAGER
Reuben Foat came to the Center in 2007 to participate in the Studio Fellowship Program and stepped in to the new position when it opened up in January 2008. Reuben earned a B.S. in Art from the University of Wisconsin in Madison 2005. His subsequent woodworking experience included work in a cabinet shop in London, England and furniture restoration in the Milwaukee area where he grew up. Here at the Center he maintains the school's machinery and assists students and instructors in the Twelve-Week Intensive.
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Peter Korn, the Center’s Director, has been a furniture maker
since 1974. He is the author of Woodworking Basics: Mastering the
Essentials of Craftsmanship (Taunton Press, 2003) and The Woodworker’s
Guide to Hand Tools (Taunton Press, 1998). Prior to founding the
Center For Furniture Craftsmanship in 1992, Peter spent six years as
Program Director at Colorado’s Anderson Ranch Arts Center and four
years as Adjunct Associate Professor at Drexel University. His award-winning
furniture has been exhibited nationally in galleries and museums.
GENERAL MANAGER
Elaine Ng became the Center’s first General Manager in September 2008. She relocated to Maine in 2006 from New York City, where she was Managing Director of the Gotham Chamber Opera and led the company to produce one of its most ambitious seasons to date. Prior to Gotham, Elaine was Associate Director of the San Francisco Contemporary Music Players, and most recently, she served as Director of Development for the Center for Maine Contemporary Art in Rockport, ME. Elaine holds both an M.B.A. and an M.A. in Arts Administration from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas.
STAFF INSTRUCTOR AND FACILITIES MANAGER
Pete Schlebecker is the Center’s Staff Instructor and Facilities Manager. He
has been a studio furniture maker since 1984 and earned his MFA. in
Furniture Design at the Rhode Island School of Design in 2004. In 1992, he
co-founded a woodworking co-operative called the Alexandria Center for
Woodworking Arts in Alexandria, Virginia, where he was living at the time.
Pete joined our staff in August of 2004, and divides his time between
teaching, keeping the buildings and tools in top condition, and managing the
Assistant and Fellowship programs.
STUDENT SERVICES
Laura Walz, our Student Services Coordinator, moved to Maine in November 2005 from State College, Pennsylvania, where she worked as program secretary for the State College School District's alternative high school. She is a graduate of Smith College with a B.A. in geology. Laura has a son who, after completing a Twelve-week Intensive at the Center, is working in a furniture repair and refinishing shop in Cincinnati, OH. Her daughter is a nursing student at Messiah College in Grantham, PA. Laura lives with her husband, Phil, on Spruce Head Island.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
President
Richard C. Kellogg, Jr. Houston, Texas
Vice-president
Robert Fippinger New York, NY
Treasurer
Don Seeley Tucson, AZ
Secretary
Jeremy Morton, M.D. Portland, ME
Karen Cadbury Rockport, ME
Mark Horowitz Weston, MA
Thomas Lie-Nielsen Waldoboro, ME
Dyke Messler Camden, ME
Craig Satterlee Marietta, GA
Bill Stengel Brunswick, ME
Joan Welsh Rockport, ME