Vermont Humanities

Kathryn N. Santiago

Kathryn N. Santiago, of Burlington, Vermont, serves as the Associate General Counsel for the Vermont State Colleges System. With over two decades of experience, her legal practice has been primarily focused on the public sector in both Vermont and New York.

Candace Lewis

Candace Lewis of Georgia, Vermont is Dean of Academic Affairs for the Community College of Vermont. Candace holds an M.A. in anthropology with an emphasis in archaeology from Northern Arizona University.

Joe Antonioli with white hair, wearing a dark jacket over a light shirt, against a blurry autumn sky

Joe Antonioli

Joe of Williston works with the Digital Learning and Inquiry department at Middlebury College. He is the Artistic and Music Director for the a cappella group Root7, and occasionally helps out at his family’s orchard.

Ilyse Morgenstein Fuerst

Professor Ilyse Morgenstein Fuerst of South Burlington specializes in Islamic studies. Her areas of expertise include Islam, religions of South Asia, and theories and histories of religion.

Susanna Gellert wears a leather jacket and blue top with long dark hair, standing in front of a bridge tunnel opening

Susanna Gellert

Susanna Gellert of Landgrove is Executive Artistic Director of Weston Theater Company in Weston, VT. Her experience as a theater maker extends to directing, producing, and teaching, and she is a member of the faculty of the David Geffen School of Drama at Yale University. 

Sandra Gartner smiles with red lipstick, shoulder length brown hair with bangs, and a pink v-neck sweater.

Sandra Gartner

Sandra Gartner of Rutland is the co- producing director of Vermont Actors’ Repertory Theatre, which is in its 20th  season. In New England, Sandra has performed with ART, Williamstown Theatre Festival, Vermont Stage and Lost Nation Theatre, among others.

Dr. Dottie Morris

Dr. Dottie Morris of Bellows Falls is the Associate Vice President for Institutional Equity and Diversity at Keene State College in New Hampshire. Dottie provides support and direction to the college as the institution works to fulfill its commitment to diversity and multiculturalism.

Gizelle guyette standing in front of a quilt with red glasses and a green top

Gizelle Guyette, Secretary

Gizelle Guyette of Shaftsbury joined the board in 2024. A graduate of Middlebury College, she is currently the Afterschool and Summer Programs project director for the Southwest Supervisory Union in Bennington, after a 21-year public library career. She retains her status as lifelong lover of the written and spoken word, and nuisance-level “book pusher,” forcing favorite reads for all ages into the hands of anyone who ventures too close. A folk artist, writer and shockingly inept amateur gardener and handywoman in her spare time, she is also a lay minister in the Episcopal Church, with an eye on the diaconate.

Kiah Morris with long black hair and a red top standing in front of a gray background

Kiah Morris, Co-Chair

Kiah Morris is a former State Representative from Bennington and member of the Vermont Commission on Women.  She is an activist, artist, and performance poet with a long history in anti-racist and economic justice movement building.

LN Bethea in a yellow top with a purple scarf against a wall of books on a bookcase

Ellen “LN” Bethea

LN has performed as a Spoken Word Poet across Vermont from Morrisville to Brattleboro. She was thrilled to have been chosen by Vermont Arts Council as an “I Am A Vermont Artist 2021.”