Staff

Margaret Stover Mertz, Ph.D. has served as Executive Director of the Thomas S. Kenan Institute for the Arts since July 2003. Dr. Mertz was Dean of the Division of General Studies at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts from 1999 until 2003.  She currently serves on the board of directors for the Southern Arts Federation (Atlanta, GA).

From 1995-2007, she served in various roles as a consultant for the International Baccalaureate Organization. She holds her bachelor's degree in the liberal arts from St. John's College, Santa Fe; and her master's and doctoral degrees in music from Harvard University. She has held teaching and administrative posts at St. John's College, Santa Fe; Harvard University; the Armand Hammer United World College of the American West; and New Mexico Highlands University. Her professional interests include contemporary issues in teaching and learning; the integration of the fine and performing arts into the standard course of study at the secondary and tertiary levels; the development of academic technology and e-learning environments; and international curriculum and assessment in music, in addition to various studies of western and world music traditions.

Lynda Summerlin Lotich is the Associate Director of the Thomas S. Kenan Institute for the Arts, bringing over 15 years of experience in nonprofit arts management. She joined the Institute staff in October 2004, serving as Assistant Director/Program Manager. Prior to joining the Institute, she was Program Manager of the A+ Schools Program at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Upon returning to North Carolina in 1998, she served as Director of Special Projects and Director of Development for the Eastern Music Festival.

While in Colorado, she served as a board member for several arts organizations and was President of the Durango Arts Center in Durango, Colorado, as well as Publicist for the Drama Department at Fort Lewis College. She was Administrator for the Pack Place Education, Arts and Science Center in Asheville, North Carolina during the initial development and capital campaign phases. She holds degrees in Music and Sociology from Brewton Parker College and Georgia Southern University.

Suzanna DuPuy Watkins joined the staff of the Thomas S. Kenan Institute for the Arts in 1993 and currently serves as Assistant Director/Financial Officer. She holds a bachelor's degree from Randolph-Macon Woman's College with a major in studio art with a focus on sculpture. Following graduation she served as Assistant Curator of Education at Reynolda House Museum of American Art in Winston-Salem and studied sculpture at Penland School of Crafts before moving to New York. She earned a master's degree in arts administration from New York University while working in the business office of the Guggenheim Museum.

After completing her graduate work, she served as Assistant Administrator at the New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York. Ms. Watkins returned to Winston-Salem in 1988 and was Assistant Director at the Sawtooth School of Visual Arts, a community art school. She is also an accomplished potter and mother of two.

Amanda Greene Balwah joined the staff of the Thomas S. Kenan Institute for the Arts in September 2005. As the Administrative Manager, her key responsibilities include providing day-to-day administrative and operations support to the Executive Director and other Institute staff, while also contributing to the development and implementation of Institute projects.

She has participated in a number of academic year internships and year-round volunteer opportunities that shaped her interest in nonprofit work, community service, development and education, including time with the North Carolina Public Interest Research Group and the Youth Vote Coalition. Ms. Balwah holds a Bachelor of Arts from UNC-Chapel Hill in American Studies and a Master of Arts in Nonprofit Management from High Point University.