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We’re excited to announce that three of our colleagues have been promoted to newly created roles in service of our 2025-2030 Strategic Plan: Indira Goodwine-Josias has been named Deputy Director, National Program Strategy, Adrienne Petrillo has been named Deputy Director, Regional Program Strategy, and Kelsey Spitalny has been named Senior Manager, Organizational Impact. Together, they hold 45 years of NEFA experience, demonstrating immeasurable care for the regional, national, and international arts and culture sector. In these new positions, Indira, Adrienne, and Kelsey will strengthen our work and carry the legacy of NEFA’s first 50 years into our next chapter.
Learn more about NEFA’s Strategic Plan, 2025-2030: A Mission Forged in Collaboration
Team Updates
Indira Goodwine-Josias, Deputy Director, National Program Strategy
Indira Goodwine-Josias has directed NEFA’s National Dance Project (NDP) and major dance initiatives in New England since 2019. NDP is widely recognized as one of the country’s major sources of funding and field building for dance. Over its 30-year history, the program has invested more than $38.5 million in funding primarily to support the creation and touring of new dance works. In 2025, NEFA announced a new chapter for our national programs. As the Deputy Director, National Program Strategy, Indira continues her legacy of centering the needs of artists across the nation by stewarding the design, development, implementation, and refinement of NEFA’s portfolio of national programs.
Adrienne Petrillo, Deputy Director, Regional Program Strategy
Adrienne Petrillo has been with NEFA for 25 of NEFA’s 50 years. She has held many roles within the New England program area, most recently Interim Director of Program Strategy and Senior Program Director, Regional Grants and International Exchange. As Deputy Director, Regional Program Strategy, Adrienne builds and supports a comprehensive strategy for deepening NEFA’s impact within the region, bringing the Regional Grants and Initiatives, Creative Economy, and Public Art departments under a Regional Programs umbrella. She works in collaboration with senior program directors Dee Schneidman (Creative Economy) and Kim Szeto (Public Art).
Kelsey Spitalny, Senior Manager, Organizational Impact
Kelsey Colcord Spitalny joined NEFA in November 2012. She’s recently served as Program Manager for Center Stage, a U.S. Department of State cultural diplomacy initiative which brought hundreds of performing artists from seventeen countries to the U.S. to engage with communities throughout the nation. As Senior Manager, Organizational Impact, Kelsey partners closely with chief operating officer Steven Fenton and chief impact officer Sara Nash to advance the implementation of NEFA’s Strategic Plan, collaborating with all staff across program and operations teams to uplift the impact of NEFA’s work.
About NEFA
The New England Foundation for the Arts invests in artists and communities, fostering equitable access to the arts and enriching the cultural landscape in New England and across the United States. Founded in 1976, NEFA has grown into a vital national and international leader, advancing opportunities for artists and strengthening the arts infrastructure through grantmaking, partnerships, convenings, and knowledge sharing.
NEFA’s work is made possible through generous support from the National Endowment for the Arts, the six New England state arts agencies, private foundations, corporations, and individual donors. As NEFA celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2026, it continues to lead with creativity, resilience, and vision, affirming the vital role of the arts in civic life and advancing a cultural landscape where all people have equitable access to artistic expression. nefa.org.