Karen Brooks Hopkins

Karen Brooks Hopkins is the Nasher Haemisegger Fellow at NCAR, Southern Methodist University, and the President Emerita of the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM). With a background in art and theater from the University of Maryland and an MFA in stage design from George Washington University, she served as BAM's president from 1999 to 2015. From 2015 to 2017, she was the Inaugural Senior Fellow in Residence at the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, focusing on anchoring cultural institutions' impact. She currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Trust for Governors Island. Karen Brooks Hopkins has received several honorary awards for her international contributions to the arts and has been named one of the “50 Most Powerful Women in New York” by Crain’s. She is also the author of "Successful Fundraising for Arts & Cultural Organizations," while her memoirs about her time at BAM were published in 2019 by Powerhouse Books.