The Folks Behind the Scenes
MEET THE INGENUITY TEAM
Interim Executive Director
SUSIE UNDERWOOD
Susie is a Central Ohio native who has lived all over this great state and has concluded that Cleveland is The Best! As an artist and administrator with a strong background in arts programming, education and community engagement, she brings a wealth of experience and strong ties to the local arts community.
Strategic Consultant
emily appelbaum
Emily Appelbaum served as Program Director, and then Executive Artist Director, from 2015-2025.
Emily joined Ingenuity in 2015, after returning to Cleveland from the Bay Area where she helped make places awesome through collaborative design, large-scale public art, earthshaking events, and outreach to underserved communities.
She has a degree in Architecture and Urban Studies from Yale, and she has a passion for creative place-making through artist involvement. She serves as Art Director for Brite Cleveland, and worked previously with LAND studio, City Architecture and Westlake Reed Leskosky (Cleveland); and (in San Francisco) American Steel Studios, the Box Shop and the late, great San Francisco Bay Guardian. She has been instrumental in visioning and bringing the Hamilton Collaborative to life.
Programming & Sustainability Manager
russa wenzel
Russa is a Cleveland native who has spent the last decade overseeing all kinds of events within our city! With a strong passion for inclusive spaces and community engagement Russa first came to Ingenuity in 2018 as a Volunteer Coordinator, her role has since grown to Programming and Sustainability Manager- helping to grow Ingenuity's programming, Ingeneers and annual festival.
In her free time she enjoys kayaking and exploring the outdoors.
Site Coordinator
Arron Bound
Arron Bound is an Ohio City native, local artist, photographer and builder working in Cleveland. He joined the Ingenuity team in 2024 and works to support IngenuityLabs infrastructure, programming, and more.
Bringing Time, Talent, & Treasure
MEET THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Executive Committee
President
kristen hoover
AmTrust Financial Services
VP of Special Projects
Brett Altier
UB Greensfelder
Treasurer
Brian Wheatall
Swagelok
Financial Advisor
Cena Hilliard
Case Western Reserve University
Co-Secretary
Radhika Balasubramaniam
Visa
Co-Secretary
Michael Bruder
Case Western Reserve University
Directors
George Smith
Enbridge Gas Ohio
Laura DeMarco Petkovic
Greater Cleveland Partnership
John McGovern
Central State University
Grant Marquit
MAGNET
Liz Ruttenberg
University Hospitals
Jay Lowry
CBIZ
Ivana Vucenovic
Deloitte
Emeritus Board
Holly Little
Attorney
James DeRosa
Commissioner of Real Estate, City of Cleveland
Doug Hoffman
Principal, Weber Murphy Fox
Joe Marinucci
Former President & CEO, Downtown Cleveland Alliance
Grafton Nunes
President, Cleveland Institute of Art
Tony Sias
President & CEO, Karamu House
Nigamanth Sridhar
National Science Foundation/Cleveland State University
David Tabor
Director of Gas Operations, Dominion Energy
Deborah Wilcox
Partner, BakerHostetler, LLC