Board of Directors
Mark Alan Burnett - Chair
Mark Alan Burnett's early ability was encouraged by an artistic family environment and inspired by visits to art museums in Europe, Asia, and the USA. Mark's father, also a portrait artist and western sculptor, encouraged his son to pursue art as a career, but Mark initially selected other paths. After studying both Art and Environmental Design at the University of Colorado in Boulder, he designed and built homes in Estes Park, managed a bookstore/cafe in Denver, and worked in advertising. Mark returned "home" to his creative potential and became a full-time portrait artist in 1982 when he moved to Nashville at age 30. Mark is on the Cultural Arts Committee at Christ Church Episcopal Cathedral, where he was also a Stephen Minister, and in charge of the bookstore. He is First Vice President of the Portrait Society of Atlanta. He is a long time Environmentalist and is very interested in Progressive Politics.
Rev. Eugene TeSelle, D.D. - Secretary/Treasurer
Gene TeSelle is a veteran community activist, having served in this capacity for over 40 years. He is active with the Belmont-Hillsboro Neighbors, Nashville Neighborhood Alliance, Tennessee Network for Community Economic Development, Affordable Housing Resources, Nashville Peace and Justice Center where he edits the newsletter, and the Nashville Housing Fund. He was a Professor at Vanderbilt Divinity School and Presbyterian minister (now retired), was active with the Witherspoon Society, the "liberal caucus" of the Presbyterian church, which he has served as Issues Analyst and as President.
Cliff Audretch
A 30-year veteran of the music industry Cliff Audretch has been a personal manager and an A&R executive at Sony Records where he helped the careers of the Dixie Chicks, Travis Tritt and Patty Loveless. He is a trained psychologist and a university administrator, he worked at the Pentagon and the Battelle Memorial Institute think tank before turning to marketing in the mid-1970s in Columbus, Ohio where he created a successful nightclub, promoted concerts and formed a regional record label. In Nashville, Cliff became a top executive in several small publishing houses and worked for larger companies such as Screen Gems/EMI and Carlin Music. He continues to be active in numerous professional organizations and to assist writers and artists.
Cynthia Bennett
Cynthia Bennett is a Policy & Compliance Analyst for Deloitte & Touche and is the former State President of the Tennessee National Organization for Women (NOW). She serves on the Tennessee Alliance for Progress Board because she is committed to creating a progressive community in Tennessee where women and men have true equality. She serves as well on the Board of the Women's Social Policy and Research Center at Vanderbilt University, the Board of the Nashville Peace and Justice Center, and is a member of the Davidson County Democratic Party Executive Committee. Her degrees include a B.S. in Management, a B.A. in French, and an M.A. in French from Purdue University.
Dietrich Johnson
Dietrich Johnson is the political Coordinator for United Steelworkers Union 1055. He is the Tennessee Rapid Response Coordinator for the Steelworkers. He is on the executive board of Nashville Middle Tennessee Central Labor Council and a 2008 graduate of the AFL/CIO Leadership Institute. He served on the Delta Service Corp in Pittsburg, a predecessor for Americorp. He is a former vocational rehabilitation instructor and a disabled veteran of the United States Airforce.
Tamara Ambar Losel
Tamara Ambar Losel is the executive director of the Nashville Conflict Resolution Center. She is a non-profit fundraiser, administrator, strategic planner and evaluator. She has more than nine years of experience working on a multiplicity of progressive issues, including child care advocacy, arts & culture, inter-group and inter-faith community building, human rights, coexistence, peace and social justice work. Tamara has two master's degrees from Brandeis University in Coexistence & Conflict Resolution and Modern Jewish History (with a focus on Black-Jewish relations in America). Tamara brings to TAP strong organizing skills and a passion for a healthier, happier world. She is active on the Doing Justly Steering Committee and on the Development Committee. She is the former grant writer/program coordinator for the Nashville Peace and Justice Center.
David Robert Lyle
David Lyle is a volunteer member of the Middle Tennessee organizing
committees of the Tennessee Health Care Campaign and Tennesseans for Fair
Taxation. He is also a volunteer activist with Tennessee Equality Project
and Americans United for Separation of Church and State. From 1998 to 2002
he served as president of the Nashville chapter of Integrity, Inc., a group
of Episcopalians working for GLBT justice within the church. He was born in
February 1961 in Arkansas and grew up in Tennessee. He received his
bachelor's degree from Columbia University in 1983 and his law degree from
Boston University School of Law in 1986. He has a private legal practice in
Nashville, with a focus on family law.
Rosemary Mincey, Ph.D
Rosemarie Mincey,is a visual artist, grassroots activist and organizer, cultural studies professor and extensive world traveler, having traveled or conducted research in 46 countries. A Rockefeller Scholar and recipient of the University of Tennessee's McClure Fellowship for the Study of World Affairs, she has been a Foreign Expert-in-Residence and Visiting Professor of Foreign Languages at Hebei Normal University (Hebei, P.R. China). A frequent speaker about the effects of globalization, her current research encompasses labor and gender, fair trade, participatory democracy, media access rights and reform, and the intersections of art, music, public policy, popular culture, and political activism. She is a consultant/researcher for the International Gender and Trade Network (IGTN, Washington, D.C.), and is a member of the National Advisory Council of the Creative America Project.
Randall Venson
Randall Venson is a social worker at United Neighborhood Health Services, working with at risk youth in Metro Public Schools. He also serve as a board member at the Nashville Peace & Justice Center, is the founder of Messengers of Peace, and have a production company called Askia Productions which focuses on music, plays and film. He is also on the Board of Reconciliation and the Director of Historic Preservation for the Kemet Jubilee.
John Zirker
John Zirker is the President of the Nashville Homeless Power Project, and the James E. Cayce Homes Residents' Association, where he resides. Cayce Homes is a large, low-income housing project based in East Nashville. John is a tireless advocate for the residents of Cayce Homes and the homeless people of Nashville. He is also active nationally and locally on issues such as the community impact of the federal Hope VI program, and affordable housing. In addition, he is a board member of Penual Ridge, a contemplative retreat center based near Nashville.
