Suncoast Black Arts Collaborative adds two new team members

The nonprofit arts group Suncoast Black Arts Collaborative is adding two new team members.

Sharon Preston-Folta will serve as program manager for SBAC's Arts and Racial Justice Discovery Series and Jaiden Johnson is the new community outreach manager for the Syllabus of Color initiative.

"Each brings a strong work ethic, passion for our mission and a longstanding commitment to community," said Michele Des Verney Redwine, founder and executive director of SBAC, in a statement. "We look forward to the innovative approaches they will bring to SBAC." 

The collaborative aims to use the power of the arts to cultivate inclusion and diversity across the region.

Preston-Folta has spent 40-plus years in advertising sales and marketing, mainly in radio. She recently retired as a senior account executive with WUSF Public Media in Tampa. 

Preston-Folta has written a memoir, "Living in the Shadow of my Father, Louis Daniel Armstrong," and is the executive producer and narrator of the Emmy Award-winning documentary, "Little Satchmo," based on her memoir.

She received her AA from Westchester Community College and BA in Communication Arts from Iona College. She is a volunteer programmer at WSLR FM in Sarasota and a member of Suncoast Women of Action. 

Johnson was previously director of development and communications for the United Way South Sarasota County and special events manager and community outreach/marketing manager for the Suncoast Humane Society. She holds a BS in organizational leadership from Southeastern University. 

In her new job, Johnson will work with area nonprofits, community centers, schools and institutions of higher learning to engage middle and high school students of color to become more involved in arts education.

"Art is critical to a young person's personal and education development," Johnson said in a statement. "But data shows that area-based Black and Latino students are less likely to be consistently involved in arts activities and instruction than their white counterparts. And that's something we hope to change."

Suncoast Black Arts Collaborative was formed in 2018 to promote greater exposure of Black artists and their work. The Arts and Racial Justice Discovery Series brings together artists and arts and civic leaders for conversations about inclusion and diversity.