|
From the Desk of Steve Leaver, Executive Director
Dear Partner,
As we are getting ready to start the 2024-2025 school year I wanted to share with you that I will be officially stepping down from my role as Executive Director of Imagination Theater. I started with this company as an ensemble member back in 1998 (see the photo of a very young me doing a show). I went on to become Artistic Director and eventually Executive Director, a position I have held since 2009. It's been an amazing ride over the course of 26 years. I'm so proud of this company and am so grateful to all of the board, staff, and ensemble members I have had the privilege to work with during my time here.
While I will be leaving Imagination Theater, I won't be going very far. I will be joining the Chicago Children's Advocacy Center (CCAC) as the Director of Education and Prevention. Imagination Theater has partnered with the CCAC for many years with our sexual abuse prevention program. As the leader of Imagination Theater, I have been a part of the steering committee for the Chicago Prevention Alliance, a group of organizations in Chicago that do prevention work on this topic. This coalition has been led by the CCAC. I'm thrilled that I will be able to continue work in sexual harm prevention and know that Imagination Theater will continue to be very close to me as we continue our partnership.
Imagination Theater will continue to be in very good hands under the leadership of Artistic Director, Samie Jo Johnson. We already have a very exciting line-up for this fall. We will be returning to Kimball Middle School to do Connections: A Theater Arts Residency with their 7th grade classes over the course of 10 weeks. We are premiering a brand new show called Clearing the Air: Skills for Conflict Resolution for students in 6-12th grade as well as a new parent and student program called Getting Through: Respectful Communication for Parents and Students.
I am so grateful for the support of our partners and am looking forward to following the success of Imagination Theater for many years to come.
Sincerely,
Steve Leaver
| 
