Our Board
MTVarts is governed by an all-volunteer, non-rotating Board; an operating board is appointed annually to oversee day-to-day operations.
Our board members include the managers of non-profit organizations, educators, actors, directors, business owners, and entrepreneurs; all with either formal or experiential arts/theatre education. Our artistic director is an art educator with MBA, military service, and an artistic resume which includes film,stage, directing, administration, and more. Our business director has an associate degree in business and 40+ years experience in successful business management. Our volunteers are rich with education and experiential knowledge; very serious amateurs who perform as professionals.
Janis Stone, Treasurer
Janis Stone holds an Associate Degree in Applied Business from Jefferson College. She has served as producer, treasurer, and business director for MTVarts since its inception in 2006. She recently retired after a career in retail management, training, and co-owner of a Manufacturer’s Representative Firm. She lives in Mount Vernon with her husband, Steve.
Bruce Jacklin, Artistic Director
Bruce Jacklin has been a certified adjudicator for the OCTA (Ohio Community Theater Association) and AACT (American Association of Community Theater) for nearly 20 years. Mr. Jacklin has directed and acted in more than 170 productions in the last 35 years. This includes professional, summer stock, collegian and community theater productions. He has received numerous awards in acting and directing at both regional and state festivals from OCTA, AACTfest, Columbus Theater Roundtable and OTA festivals. Bruce was also in the film “Nietzsche Ate Here”. The film premiered in Washington, D.C. and was featured in the 2013 Montreal International Film Festival. He won Best Supporting Actor at the San Francisco Actor's Film Festival and in 2014 he received the Red Cross Education Hero Award. Bruce is a member of AFTRA/SAG (American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, Screen Actors Guild). For his film and television work he is represented by PCG Talent in Columbus, Ohio and Docherty in Pittsburgh, Penn. Bruce is the artistic director for both MTVarts and The Alcove Theater productions.
Monique Milligan, Member at Large
Monique is Branch Manager of Park National Bank Main and South Branches in Mount Vernon OH. She has long been MTVarts personal banker and works closely with our board to maintain fiscal responsibility and integrity. She also oversees the box office location available at Park Main Branch.
Susan Moreland, President
Susan Moreland has been involved with MTVarts since the beginning. She had volunteered as a director, choreographers, actress, and all around whenever needed. She is our Ohio Community Theater Association representative and was honored as State delegate of the year in 2019.
Susan and her husband Bob are retired and live in Mount Vernon are proud grandparents to six children. She is very honored and proud to be President of the MTVarts family.
Carrie Haver, Vice President
Carrie Haver is the marketing director and graphic artist at Markt Solutions. She holds a BA in English from Mount Vernon Nazarene University and an MA in graphic communication from the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology. Over the last 20+ years, she has performed in, costumed, or volunteered backstage for more than 30 shows with theatre groups in Knox County. She lives in Mount Vernon with her husband and son.
Leah Miller, Secretary
Leah Miller is the Director of Human Resources at Kenyon College. She serves on the boards for Knox County Head Start and MTVarts, Inc. Leah holds an Undergrad in Theatre from Ashland University and a masters degree from LSU in Leadership and Workforce Development. She lives in Mt Vernon with her husband and daughter.
Noelle Jordan, At-Large Member
Noelle is the Director of Kenyon’s Brown Family Environmental Center & Kenyon Farm. She loves connecting people to nature and conserving natural diversity.
Noelle was involved in theater in high school and college. She performed in many productions, including the roles of Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz and Lizzie in Baby. Her most enjoyable role was Bonnie, the gangster’s maul, in Anything Goes, but her most interesting production was High Spirits. She performed in a semi-professional performance of Beauty and the Beast for Cincinnati’s Children’s Theater, and enjoyed learning about opera as a supernumerary in Faust for the Cincinnati Opera.
Noelle is excited to serve on the MTVarts board. “It’s immensely satisfying to serve ‘behind the scenes’ and have an impact on arts/theater education for youth.”
Jessica Ryals, At-Large Member
Jessica Ryals is a grown-up theater kid. By day she’s Managing Partner with CFO Colleague LLC, helping colleges and universities across the US keep the lights on and run thriving business offices. The rest of the time you can find her shuttling her 4 kids to activities (like rehearsal), volunteering at church at MTVarts, or taking walks with her husband Jesse. She’s been putting on performances since early elementary school. She loves the connection of live theatre and the community it creates. On any given show weekend, you can find her sneaking into a school performance, coordinating volunteers from the green room, and taking photos of the behind the scenes fun.
Serra Austin Barrett, At-Large Member
Serra Austin Barrett has been creating and performing music and stories since she was old enough to walk and talk. Her love of storytelling led her to theater when she landed the lead role in the seventh grade musical at Gahanna Middle School West.
Since earning her MA in Theater with an emphasis on script and character analysis, Serra has focused more on arts education and the next generation of young artists. She believes deeply in the power of live theater, and the vital life experience it brings to cast, crew, and audience alike.
Some of Serra’s favorite onstage roles over the years have been Music Man’s “Eulalie MacKecknie Shinn,” “Cookie” in Neil Simon’s Rumors, and “Vi” in Footloose.
Her directorial portfolio includes “Freaky Friday,” and “Little Women,” from her time with MVNU, “Seussical JR,” and “HONK JR” for MTVarts. She has also stage managed many shows for MTVarts including “Oliver,” “Sister Act,” “Frozen JR,” and “Grease.”
In addition to her love of theater, Serra also has a passion for vocal performance and music. She teaches elementary music for Danville Local Schools as well as private voice lessons out of her home studio. Serra also headlines The Serra Austin Band, a pop and rock cover band that performs locally.
Serra has been married to the love of her life, Jermey Barrett, since 2003 and they share 3 beautiful children together: Jackson, Jude, and Charli. In their free time they can be found hosting gatherings for their close friends and family where they love to cook and entertain.
