WASHINGTON – Today, President Biden announced his intent to appoint the following individuals to serve as members of the Board of Trustees of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts:

  • David C. Bohnett
  • Tatiana Copeland
  • Robert Drury Lenhard
  • Phefelia Nez
  • David Mark Rubenstein
  • Cari B. Sacks
  • Hilda L. Solis

The Board of Trustees of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, which serves as both our National Cultural Center and a living memorial to John Fitzgerald Kennedy, is comprised of various government officials and individuals appointed directly by the President of the United States. Members of the Board of Trustees provide guidance and direction to help the Kennedy Center fulfill the three parts of its mission: Serving as a suitable memorial in honor of the late President, exemplified by the Kennedy Center’s new immersive permanent exhibit exploring President Kennedy’s relationship to the arts, “Art and Ideals: President John F. Kennedy”; ensuring the Kennedy Center presents world-class performing arts from throughout the United States and across the globe; and maintaining the Center’s role as a leader in national performing arts education policy and programs, with an additional focus on accessibility and making sure that performing arts are accessible to all Americans.

David C. Bohnett, Member, Board of Trustees of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
David C. Bohnett is a philanthropist and technology entrepreneur committed to community building and social activism. In addition to serving as the Chairman of the David Bohnett Foundation, he serves on the Board of the University of Southern California, the Los Angeles Philharmonic Association, the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts, and the Lake Agawam Conservancy. Since 1999, the David Bohnett Foundation has provided funding and technical support to innovative organizations and institutions across numerous funding areas: research and public policy initiatives aimed at reducing firearm violence; graduate school leadership programs at the University of Michigan, UCLA, NYU, and Harvard; LGBTQ community support; cultural and performing arts support, and numerous other social justice initiatives in support of underserved communities.

Bohnett founded the pioneering online social networking site GeoCities in 1994 and he continues to be a leader in the technology and information services industry as founder and managing member of the early stage technology fund, Baroda Ventures. His academic credentials include a B.S. from the University of Southern California, an M.B.A in Finance from the University of Michigan, and Honorary Doctorate Degrees from USC and the Whittier College. Bohnett maintains residences in Los Angeles and New York.

Tatiana Copeland, Member, Board of Trustees of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
Tatiana Brandt Copeland has a diverse international background. Her personal story began in Dresden, Germany, where she was born. After living in Denmark for several years, the family emigrated to Argentina where she would spend most of her childhood, before coming to the United States to attend college. She received her Bachelor of Science degree from the University of California at Los Angeles, majoring in Accounting, graduating Phi Beta Kappa and summa cum laude. She went on to receive her M.B.A. from the University of California at Berkeley. She fluently speaks English, Russian, French, German, Italian, and Spanish. Copeland is the Co-Owner and President of Bouchaine Vineyards in Napa Valley, California and is involved with several boards and non-profits, including the Delaware Art Museum, Wilmington’s Grand Opera House, and the Philadelphia Orchestra.

She is married to Gerret Copeland and resides in Wilmington, Delaware. Both she and Gerret are deeply committed to the arts and the welfare of animals, especially dogs. This year marked the opening of the Copeland Center for Animal Welfare in partnership with the Brandywine Valley SPCA. The Copelands have established a unique model of community philanthropy in their home state of Delaware, receiving numerous awards for their commitments, including the 2019 Delaware History Makers Award and the 2011 Order of the First State. Copeland is very involved in the music world, as the composer and pianist Sergei Rachmaninoff was her mother’s uncle, and she was named after his daughter Tatiana.

Robert Drury Lenhard, Member, Board of Trustees of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
Robert Lenhard is a partner at Covington & Burling, LLP, in Washington, D.C. He is a member of the firm’s Election & Political Law practice group, where he advises corporations, not-for-profit organizations, candidates, trade associations, and individuals on compliance with federal and state campaign finance, lobbying, and ethics laws. Lenhard served as outside counsel to the Biden for President campaign and advised the presidential transitions of both the Biden-Harris and Obama-Biden administrations. Prior to joining the firm, Lenhard served as Chair of the Federal Election Commission in 2007 and Vice Chairman of the agency in 2006. He is a graduate of the Johns Hopkins University and the UCLA School of Law.

Phefelia Nez, Member, Board of Trustees of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
Phefelia Nez is the First Lady of the Navajo Nation and was raised on Hopi Partition Land in Big Mountain, Arizona. She was raised in a traditional Navajo hogan without modern amenities and has always spent time outdoors tending to livestock and her garden. First Lady Nez and her husband, Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez, reside in Window Rock, Arizona with their two sons, Christopher and Alexander. First Lady Nez homeschools their sons.

First Lady Nez earned her undergraduate degrees in Political Science and Criminal Justice, a Master of Public Administration, and an honorary doctorate degree in humane letters from Northern Arizona University. She has 15 years of experience serving on various boards, task forces, and commissions. In addition to her education and volunteerism, First Lady Nez is a member of Arizona State University’s Lodestar Center’s Nonprofit Executive Leadership Academy Class V. In her role as First Lady, Nez focuses on education (early childhood development, K-12, post-secondary, cooperate extension education, and adult basic education), outdoor recreation, nonprofits, volunteerism, philanthropy, faith-based initiatives, financial literacy, animal welfare, and the retention of the Navajo language and culture. First Lady Nez’s platform focuses on restoring and strengthening homes and their families.

David Mark Rubenstein, Member, Board of Trustees of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
David M. Rubenstein is Co-Founder and Co-Chairman of The Carlyle Group, one of the world’s largest and most successful private investment firms. Established in 1987, Carlyle now manages $376 billion from 26 offices around the world. Rubenstein is Chairman of the Boards of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the Council on Foreign Relations, the National Gallery of Art, the Economic Club of Washington, and the University of Chicago; a Fellow of the Harvard Corporation; a Trustee of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, Johns Hopkins Medicine, the Institute for Advanced Study, the National Constitution Center, the Brookings Institution, and the World Economic Forum; and a Director of the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, among other board seats.

Rubenstein is a leader in the area of Patriotic Philanthropy, having made transformative gifts for the restoration or repair of the Washington Monument, Lincoln Memorial, Jefferson Memorial, Monticello, Montpelier, Mount Vernon, Arlington House, Iwo Jima Memorial, the Kennedy Center, the Smithsonian, the National Archives, the National Zoo, the Library of Congress, and the National Museum of African American History and Culture. Rubenstein is an original signer of The Giving Pledge; the host of The David Rubenstein Show and Bloomberg Wealth with David Rubenstein; and the author of The American Story, How to Lead, The American Experiment, and How to Invest.

Cari B. Sacks, Member, Board of Trustees of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
Cari Sacks is an active philanthropist and is involved with several civic and cultural organizations. She has served as an appointee to both the City of Chicago’s Cultural Advisory Council, and to President Obama’s Advisory Committee on the Arts. She has served as a trustee of the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago since 2004 and is the current board chair. Sacks is a trustee of the Erikson Institute where she received her Masters degree and has been a member of the Board since 2002. She is also on the Board of Directors for Steppenwolf Theater Company as well as the Board of Directors of Personal PAC, a nonpartisan political action committee based in Illinois. Sacks graduated with a degree in Psychology from the University of San Diego and received her Masters degree in Early Childhood Development from the Erikson Institute. She lives in Chicago, Illinois with her husband Michael.

Hilda L. Solis, Member, Board of Trustees of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
Hilda L. Solis serves as Los Angeles County Supervisor for the First District. As a daughter of working-class, immigrant parents from Nicaragua and Mexico, she understood at a young age the challenges that workers face and the dignity that they deserved. Taught to value hard work and give back to her community, Supervisor Solis believes that government, with the right leadership, can help substantially improve the lives of many people.

Raised in La Puente, California, Supervisor Solis was the first in her family to attend college at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona and the University of Southern California. From there, Supervisor Solis began developing her political values as a progressive champion for the most marginalized people in our society. Since both of her parents were members of their unions, Supervisor Solis became an early advocate for workers’ rights, better wages, and workplace safety – eventually becoming the United States Secretary of Labor for President Barack Obama. Before making history as the first Latina to serve in the Presidential Cabinet, Supervisor Solis’ public service spanned across the Rio Hondo Board of Trustees, both chambers of the California State Legislature, and the House of Representatives. She broke the glass ceiling repeatedly by becoming the first Latina ever elected to the State Senate and the first woman to win the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award for her work in environmental justice. She represents the San Gabriel Valley, Northeast LA, and the Eastside as Los Angeles County Supervisor for the First District.

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