ASC said interim boss would stay until a permanent hire came. It just named another interim

Charlotte’s Arts & Science Council has another new leader, its third in less than a year.

Adam Santalla Pierce, who has been with the local arts nonprofit for seven years, was named interim president, ASC said Thursday afternoon in a news release.

ASC has been working to redefine its role as an advocate and funding agency for the arts in Charlotte after much of its funding was diverted by the City Council, which wanted a stronger hand in how arts funding is handled.

Santalla Pierce is ASC’s third leader since December. The first interim president was supposed to stay until a permanent hire was made, but that didn’t happen. Santalla is the agency’s second interim president.

Santalla Pierce is a leader among the city’s creatives and has extensive knowledge about ASC’s operations, ASC board chairman Tony Perez said in a statement.

Santalla Pierce is ASC’s vice president of community and artist support. He will continue to lead grantmaking as interim president, ASC said.

The nonprofit ASC was founded in 1958 as the Charlotte Arts Fund, and serves as a funding pass-through agency for area arts and culture organizations. ASC reported $9.7 million in revenue in 2023.

ASC leadership search

Santalla Pierce replaces interim president Monifa Drayton. Drayton took the reins after president Krista Terrell resigned in December.

Terrell had been president since 2021, and worked for the ASC for 21 years. As leader of the ASC, she faced a couple turbulent years fighting for city arts funding and had the agency apologize for funding practices that perpetuated inequities against minorities over the years.

Drayton’s role as interim president was temporary and ends June 23, ASC said Thursday. However, in December, ASC said Drayton would serve in the role until the permanent replacement was found during the ongoing national search for a new president, The Charlotte Observer reported.

Drayton, the first Black woman to chair the Mecklenburg Alcoholic Beverage Control Board, was named executive director of the Mecklenburg County Democratic Party, effective June 24.

More about ASC’s interim president

During Santalla Pierce’s time leading ASC grant programs, the organization more than tripled its investments in creatives, from $446,000 in 2021 to $1.7 million in 2022 and $1.5 million in 2023, the group said.

Originally from Alexandria, Virginia, Santalla Pierce worked for performing arts organizations in Washington, D.C., Virginia and North Carolina before joining ASC in 2017.

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