Joffrey Ballet Adds Six New Board Members and Elects Life Director
Monique Burt Williams, Kyoko Crawford, and Patty P. Andringa among those joining the Chicago company's leadership.
The Joffrey Ballet has announced the election of Monique Burt Williams, Kyoko Crawford, Matthew Meiners, Katie Ossman, Carey S. Roberts, and Unmi Song to the Board of Directors, each to serve a three-year term. Additionally, the Joffrey is honored to announce the election of Patty P. Andringa as a Life Director, effective immediately.
“An engaged Board is indispensable to a thriving organization. It brings together leaders who ask thoughtful questions, exercise sound judgment, and share a deep commitment to the mission,” says Joffrey Ballet Board Chair Jim McDonough. “On behalf of the Board of Directors, it is a privilege to welcome Monique, Kyoko, Matthew, Katie, Carey, and Unmi to the Board. Their strategic insights, diverse experiences, and distinct perspectives will strengthen the Joffrey's governance as we continue serving one of the world's greatest cultural cities. We are also honored to recognize Patty Andringa as a Life Director. For over three decades, Patty has served the Joffrey with extraordinary generosity and dedication. This recognition celebrates her leadership and lasting impact on the generations of artists and audiences we serve.” McDonough adds, “I extend my sincere thanks to Chuck Smith, Chair of the Governance and Nominating Committee, and the members of the Committee for their thoughtful stewardship throughout this year's nomination process.”
“Enduring institutions are shaped by the strength of their leadership,” says President and CEO Greg Cameron. “Joffrey leaders understand that the future of the organization depends on the decisions we make today. Our newest Board Directors and Life Director embody that perspective. Their expertise across sectors will strengthen our ability to pursue bold artistic ambitions, broaden access to dance, and ensure the Joffrey continues to evolve.”
Cameron continues, “We are especially proud to recognize Patty Andringa as a Life Director. Patty joined the Board before the Joffrey made its historic move to Chicago, and has helped guide this organization through one of the most transformative chapters in its history. As we celebrate our 30th anniversary in Chicago, this recognition feels especially fitting. Patty's wisdom and unwavering belief in the Joffrey have helped shape the organization we are today, and her influence will continue to guide our future.”
About The Joffrey Ballet's New Life Director
Patty P. Andringa
Patty P. Andringa joined the Joffrey Board of Directors in 1993. She is involved in a variety of nonprofit boards including Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Washington (Past Board Chairman), Mount Holyoke College Art Museum (Past Development Committee Chairman), BGC Foundation (past Vice President), The Holton-Arms School (Emerita), and Adas Israel Synagogue (Past President). Other boards she served on include the National Symphony Orchestra (VP for Community Development), The Kennedy Center (Community Advisory Board), Children's Hospital (Emerita), The Population Reference Bureau (Development Committee Chairman), and Leadership Greater Washington (Executive Committee and Development Committee Chairman).
Patty has been recognized with numerous awards including the President's Volunteer Service Award, the Jefferson Medal, the Volunteer Fundraiser of the Year Award from the National Society of Fundraising Executives, WUSA Channel 9's “9 Who Care Award,” the Boys & Girls Clubs of America Medallion, Mount Holyoke College's Alumnae Achievement Award, and The Joffrey Ballet's Arpino Angel Award.
A cum laude graduate in political science from Mount Holyoke College, Patty remains active and was nominated for President of the College. Patty maintains a consultant and facilitator practice in board development and governance, fundraising, strategic planning and marketing, and lectures. She served on Riggs Bank N.A.'s Board of Consultants.
About The Joffrey Ballet's New Board Members
Monique Burt Williams
Monique Burt Williams is the founder of Two Cups of Tea Career Consulting, an integrative workforce development firm that specializes in advising professionals through high-stakes career transitions.
For more than two decades, Monique has counseled Fortune 500 companies, global law firms, and government agencies through complex workforce augmentation and talent management challenges. After working for several years at a prominent litigation boutique, she joined the legal division of a Fortune 100 workforce solutions company. While there, she built a consulting practice to address the evolving needs of corporate law departments: legal operations and administration, outside counsel management & cost containment, recruiting, professional development, workforce management, and talent integration.
Monique later served as CEO of the nation's largest woman-owned search firm for in-house lawyers. She earned a B.A. with honors from the University of Michigan and her J.D. from the Indiana University Maurer School of Law. She also studied International Business Transactions at the Sorbonne in Paris, France. Monique is an active member of YPO, where she serves on the Membership Engagement Committee. She is a Senior Consultant with Beard Strategies, where she supports law firms and legal professionals through organizational consulting and strategic coaching. Her work has been recognized by The American Lawyer, Lawyers Weekly, Stockhouse, Bloomberg, and Insider. Monique and her husband Brandon have two children and reside in the greater Chicago area.
Kyoko Crawford
As a member of the Joffrey Women's Board, Kyoko Crawford has been an active Joffrey advocate since she joined in 2022. Kyoko has co-chaired various Women's Board events and currently sits on its Executive Committee. Kyoko is a serial entrepreneur who has founded, built, and scaled innovative tech companies. She is President and CEO of OakPath, a startup helping Americans ages 55 and older navigate the next stage of their lives on their own terms. She also serves as a director at her family office, TRIAD Capital Management. Previously, she was a member of the executive team at Industrious, a leading workspace provider.
She is a Co-Founder and former CEO of SkinIO, an AI-enabled skin cancer screening platform for mobile devices, for which she was named as Crain's Chicago Business' “40 under 40.” She previously lived in New York, where she was Co-Founder and Vice President of Nexops, a tech firm, and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Biomedical Engineering from Harvard University.
Kyoko and her husband James Crawford live in Chicago, Illinois, with their two young children. Her daughter is enrolled at the Grainger Academy.
Matthew Meiners
Matthew Meiners is a Winnetka native whose connection to the performing arts began early in life — he was, by his own admission, a dedicated theater kid through middle and high school, and stayed involved in the performing arts through his college years. He studied history at the University of Edinburgh and the University of San Francisco, with his time in Edinburgh proving especially formative.
Matthew spent nearly two decades in California, where he and his husband, Ryan Rudnick, restored and renovated residential properties across San Francisco over the course of some ten years. The couple returned to Chicago in 2022, and to the North Shore in 2024, where Matthew now devotes the bulk of his time to his family, a role he regards as his most meaningful work. The Joffrey Ballet has been a presence in Matthew's life for as long as he can remember, owing to his grandmother, Mary B. Galvin, who was instrumental in bringing the Company from New York to Chicago. He is honored to continue that family legacy of stewardship as a new member of the Board of Directors and looks forward to contributing to the Company's next chapter.
Katie Ossman
Katie Ossman is a Partner at Water Street Healthcare Partners, an investment firm dedicated to building market-leading healthcare businesses. Katie specializes in the medical products and diagnostics industry, where she has been instrumental in building a group of businesses that stand out for their innovative products and value-added services that improve patient care and outcomes. She has completed multiple cross-border investments and strategic acquisitions to support Water Street's family of companies with expanding their capabilities and geographic reach globally.
Katie serves on the boards of the Medical Device Manufacturers Association and the Healthcare Industry Distributors Association (HIDA) Educational Foundation. She is also a member of the board of directors of Alcor Scientific, enableCV, GlobalMed Logistix, MedSpeed, and Safeguard Medical. Prior to joining Water Street, she worked with Avista Capital Partners and J.P. Morgan's investment banking group. Katie's collaborations with leaders across the healthcare industry led to her being recognized as one of the leading women in private equity by Buyouts magazine (2025). Katie graduated from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania with a bachelor's degree in economics. She earned her master's degree in business administration with high honors from the University of Chicago's Booth School of Business. Katie and her husband Dan have two children and reside in Chicago.
Carey S. Roberts
Carey S. Roberts was most recently Executive Vice President and General Counsel at Ventas (NYSE: VTR). As a member of the Ventas executive leadership team, Carey was responsible for Ventas's legal, compliance, tax, government relations and risk departments and oversaw the firm's sustainability strategy and initiatives. Prior to joining Ventas in 2020, Carey was Executive Vice President, Chief Legal Officer and Corporate Secretary of Assurant, Inc., a global provider of insurance and other risk management products and services (NYSE: AIZ).
Carey previously served as Deputy General Counsel, Global Chief Compliance Officer and Corporate Secretary of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc., a global professional services firm (NYSE: MMC) and as a partner in the corporate practice of Covington & Burling LLP, an international law firm, where she counseled companies in a wide range of industries, including financial services, life sciences and biotechnology and information technology. Carey is a member of The Economic Club of Chicago and has previously served on the Board of Directors of Openlands, the American Alpine Club and the American Composers Orchestra. She received her bachelor's degree from the University of Chicago and her J.D. from the George Washington University Law School, both with honors.
Unmi Song
Unmi Song is a former President of the Lloyd A. Fry Foundation, where she served for 22 years. The Fry Foundation is a private foundation that supports nonprofits serving low-income communities in Chicago across arts learning, education, and employment. Unmi holds a B.A. in Economics and an M.B.A. in Finance from the University of Chicago. Unmi was a vice president at Bankers Trust Company and held positions at Citicorp Investment Bank in New York City, at the First National Bank of Chicago and at Gold Star Tele-Electric Company, in Seoul, Korea. Prior to joining the Fry Foundation, she directed grantmaking focused on job training and welfare policy issues at the Joyce Foundation.
She currently serves on the board of the Metropolitan Planning Council. She was appointed by President Obama to serve on the President's Advisory Commission on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. She has served on the boards of the Alliance for the Great Lakes, Forefront (formerly the Donors Forum of Illinois) and Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in Philanthropy, and she has served as board chair for Asian Americans Advancing Justice, a national civil rights organization.
About The Joffrey Ballet
The Joffrey Ballet is one of the premier dance companies in the world today, with a reputation for boundary-breaking performances for 71 years. The Joffrey repertoire is an extensive collection of all-time classics, modern masterpieces, and original works.
Founded in 1956 by pioneers Robert Joffrey and Gerald Arpino, the Joffrey remains dedicated to artistic expression, innovation, and first-rate education and engagement programming. The Joffrey Ballet continues to thrive under The Mary B. Galvin Artistic Director Ashley Wheater MBE and President and CEO Greg Cameron.
The Joffrey Ballet is grateful for the support of its 2026–2027 Season Sponsors: The Abbott Fund, Alphawood Foundation Chicago, Daniel and Pamella DeVos Foundation, The Florian Fund, Gallagher, and Anne L. Kaplan. Season-long sponsorship of the Company Artists is generously made possible by Margot and Josef Lakonishok.
For more information on The Joffrey Ballet and its programs, visit joffrey.org.