OUR STAFF
Leaders
JANA WEBSTER
PRESIDENT AND CEO
Responsibilities: Jana is responsible for the strategic direction of the Foundation and assuring the Foundation has the resources needed to meet its mission of enhancing the experience and exceeding the expectations of travelers at MSP International Airport, as well as supporting the airport and broader aviation community.
Background: Prior to her position with the Airport Foundation MSP, Jana served as the Director of other Twin Cities nonprofits and held positions in broadcast and print media. She continues to be involved in the Twin Cities community and has served as a Board Member of Wings Financial, Stillwater Library, the U of M Tourism Center, the Learning Jet and is a Council Member of Explore Minnesota.
LAURA SARTAIN
VICE PRESIDENT, PROGRAMS
Responsibilities: Laura is responsible for program development, collaboration, capacity-building, and organizational impact. She also provides leadership and support to strategic Foundation initiatives and the expansion of services for travelers.
Background: Laura’s background includes nearly 20 years of non-profit senior leadership experience in Minnesota and California. Most recently, she served as Director, Volunteer Programs at the Foundation and was Senior Director of Volunteer Support for Girl Scouts of Minnesota and Wisconsin River Valleys.
SARA ERNST
DIRECTOR, VOLUNTEER OPERATIONS
Responsibilities:
Sara recruits, trains, retains, and recognizes Airport Foundation MSP Volunteers and provides strategy and direction for Volunteer Program development. Sara has nearly 20 years of experience in volunteer management, program operations, community partnerships and stakeholder engagement.
Background:
Prior to joining the Airport Foundation MSP, Sara was in local youth social enterprise. Most recently, as Associate Director with Cookie Cart, she oversaw the organization’s youth program, bakery operations and volunteers at both their Minneapolis and Saint Paul locations.
BEN OWEN
DIRECTOR, ARTS@MSP
Responsibilities:
Ben leads the Arts and Culture program at both Terminals 1 and 2 at MSP International Airport. The Arts@MSP Program is comprised of Commissioned Artwork, Rotating Exhibits and the Performing Arts.
Background:
Prior to joining the Airport Foundation MSP, Ben was Program Officer for the Minnesota State Arts Board, where he managed the Minnesota Percent for Art in Public Places program, acquiring works of art for communities throughout Minnesota using up to one percent of state-funded capital construction or renovation project budgets. He has more than a decade of experience in public art management for statewide public art agencies in the United States.
DAVID RIVARD
DIRECTOR, MARKETING
AND COMMUNICATIONS
Responsibilities:
David is responsible for implementing and managing all marketing initiatives of the Airport Foundation MSP including Communications, Events and Public Relations, as well as helping to manage Sponsorships and Tourism-related activities.
Background:
Prior to his position with the Airport Foundation MSP, David’s background included more than 30 years with Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines in a variety of Corporate Communications, Global Sales Communications, Sales Support, Customer Care, Flight Operations, and In-Flight leadership roles.
Executive Administration
CINDY LAWSON
EXECUTIVE ADMINISTRATION COORDINATOR
Responsibilities:
Cindy is responsible for providing high-level administrative support to the President and CEO and manages daily operational and office management functions.
Background:
Prior to joining the Airport Foundation MSP, Cindy spent 18 years supporting senior leaders at the University of Minnesota. For the last 10 years, she served as the primary administrative contact for six consecutive Vice Presidents for Research.
Business and Finance
AMANDA BROOKS
BUSINESS AND FINANCE COORDINATOR
Responsibilities:
Amanda is responsible for key responsibilities including processing accounts payables and receivables, purchasing, sales reporting and tracking, management of online payments systems, and daily financial operations, ensuring compliance with regulations.
Background:
Prior to joining the Airport Foundation MSP, Amanda served as Comptroller for a law firm and a oversaw the accounting, management and operations for a Commerical property holding group. Amanda previously held roles as a Wealth Management Analyst and as a Development Associate.
Partnerships and Development
DEREK WALTERS
MANAGER, PARTNERSHIPS AND DEVELOPMENT
Responsibilities:
Derek builds and nurtures relationships with sponsors, partners and donors including the responsibility of securing sponsorships, seeking funding through individual donations, coordinating fundraising events and overseeing incoming grant requests.
Background:
Prior to joining the Airport Foundation MSP, Derek had a diverse background in aviation, television and leading marketing and communications teams in higher education. Most recently, he managed enterprise partnerships as Strategic Account Executive for a major retail brand.
Travelers Assistance
JOHN HEWITT
MANAGER, TRAVELERS ASSISTANCE OPERATIONS
Responsibilities:
John manages Travelers Assistance program activities at MSP International Airport including implementation of program policies and procedures. He also ensures that the assistance provided by Volunteers meets and exceeds the Foundation’s customer service standards. In addition, John builds and maintains key strategic relationships with various airport stakeholder groups to assure the best possible level of customer service for MSP travelers.
Background:
Prior to joining the Airport Foundation MSP as a Volunteer in 2013, and being promoted to Supervisor in 2016, John had more than 30 years of experience in the copier industry and previously the U.S. Air Force as an electro-mechanical technician.
CHRIS STEWART
SUPERVISOR, TRAVELERS ASSISTANCE
Responsibilities:
Chris coordinates program activities and services. In partnership with the Travelers Assistance team members, he provides hands-on supervision, guidance, and support to Volunteers to ensure that Travelers Assistance delivers quality service to travelers and the airport community.
Background:
Prior to joining the Airport Foundation MSP as a Volunteer, Chris spent over 30 years as a highly-awarded federal bankruptcy litigator. During his career as an attorney, he was also active in the legal community and presented regularly at continuing education seminars.
JOEL LAGERQUIST
SUPERVISOR, TRAVELERS ASSISTANCE
Responsibilities:
Joel coordinates program activities and services. In partnership with the Travelers Assistance team members, he provides hands-on supervision, guidance, and support to Volunteers to ensure that Travelers Assistance delivers quality service to travelers and the airport community.
Background:
Prior to joining the Airport Foundation MSP as a Volunteer, Joel enjoyed a 40-year career as a Software Engineer, mostly with Toro.
MARK BRODERSEN
SUPERVISOR, TRAVELERS ASSISTANCE
Responsibilities:
Mark coordinates program activities and services. In partnership with the Travelers Assistance team members, he provides hands-on supervision, guidance, and support to Volunteers to ensure that Travelers Assistance delivers quality service to travelers and the airport community..
Background:
Prior to joining the Airport Foundation MSP as a Volunteer, Mark was Regional Vice President of Operations for Taher, Inc. Food and Beverage in Minnetonka, MN
MATEUSZ OSKARBSKI
SUPERVISOR, TRAVELERS ASSISTANCE
Responsibilities:
Mateusz coordinates program activities and services. In partnership with the Travelers Assistance team members, he provides hands-on supervision, guidance, and support to Volunteers to ensure that Travelers Assistance delivers quality service to travelers and the airport community.
Background:
Mateusz is also an Air Traffic Controller at MSP. Prior to joining the Airport Foundation MSP as a Volunteer, he was a Prospect Wheelchair Supervisor.
Program Management
KATIE HANNESTAD
VOLUNTEER PROGRAM ASSOCIATE
Responsibilities:
Katie is responsible for operational and administrative support related to Volunteer recruitment and retention.
Background:
Prior to joining the Airport Foundation MSP, Katie was with the Minnesota Historical Society where she worked with its Volunteer and Intern programs. Prior to that, she was with Minneapolis Public Schools.
RACHEL MCLEAN
PROGRAM ASSOCIATE
Responsibilities:
In partnership with the Travelers Assistance and Volunteer Programs staff teams, Rachel provides hands-on supervision and guidance to Volunteers and supports special projects and activities.
Background:
Prior to joining the Airport Foundation MSP as a Volunteer and later as a Travelers Assistance Supervisor, Rachel had a 25-year career in Sales, Marketing and Business Development for retailers and garment manufacturers in California and Minnesota.
Arts @ MSP
SAM FUENTES
VISUAL ARTS MANAGER
Responsibilities:
Sam oversees the Visual Arts Subcommittee, manages exhibitions, and collections, and guides acquisitions for Commissioned Arts collection.
Background:
Prior to joining the Foundation, Sam had more than eight years of experience in visual arts as an Art Handler and Transportation Specialist for Crozier Fine Arts and as a Senior Designer for Chelsea Frames, both in New York City. Sam has also served as an Events Attendant for the Weisman Art Museum in Minneapolis, managing the setup and take-down of public and private events.
KRIN MCMILLEN
MUSIC AND ENTERTAINMENT MANAGER
Responsibilities:
Krin oversees the Performing Arts Committee, manages a diverse roster of artists and develops new performance engagements.
Background:
Prior to joining the Airport Foundation MSP, Krin was the operations manager with Minnesota Youth Symphonies since 2017. Prior to that, she spent six years with Valleyfair Amusement Park Live Entertainment in Shakopee, Minnesota, where she served as a singer, dancer and entertainer, as well as the casting director and manager for all-park entertainment.
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