Bethany Chisholm is the Vice President of External Relations and works with the Cultural Alliance team and board to share its work, advocacy, and mission with the Greater Philadelphia region and beyond. 

She brings over a decade of fund development experience in Philadelphia nonprofits, most recently as the Director of Development at the Rosenbach Museum & Library. She also held roles at the Philadelphia Parks Alliance, Girls Inc. of Greater Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey, and the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. She serves as a board member of the Conservation Center of Art and Historic Artifacts, was the president of Neighbors Investing in Childs Elementary, and Development Chair and Vice President of Young Involved Philadelphia.

Bethany is from the Greater Boston area and attended the University of Massachusetts Boston. She now lives in the East Falls neighborhood with her husband Justin and their many pets.
 

Patricia Wilson Aden is President & CEO of the Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance, which leads, strengthens and amplifies the voices of 400+ member organizations that make up the region’s cultural community. Aden is an unwavering advocate for the arts and culture sector with more than 40 years of experience leading non-profit and cultural institutions, most recently as President of The Blues Foundation in Memphis, Tennessee and as President & CEO of the African American Museum in Philadelphia.

During her tenure at AAMP, Aden preserved a strong financial future for the museum by establishing strategic partnerships, delivering nationally acclaimed programming, and creating deeper donor engagement. At the Blues Foundation, she led the adoption of the Foundation's Statement Against Racism and its accompanying Action Plan, furthered the Blues Foundation's Blues in the Schools program, and helped develop the museum’s Blues Guide, while shepherding the organization through the continuing COVID-19 pandemic. Aden has also served in executive roles for the Rhythm & Blues Foundation, the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the Preservation Alliance of Greater Philadelphia.

Aden currently serves on the board of PA Humanities and is Vice Chair of the Friends of Cooch’s Bridge in Newark, Delaware. She was selected to serve as a member of the National Museum of African American Music’s Music Industry Relations Council. She has also served on the Smithsonian Affiliate Advisory Council and is a member of the Links, Inc. (Philadelphia Chapter). She has served as a panelist for the National Endowment for the Arts and other national and state level granting agencies.

Aden holds a bachelor’s degree in history from Spelman College and a master’s in historic preservation from Cornell University. She was awarded an honorary doctorate from Davis & Elkins College.

Photo credit: Sabina Louise Pierce.