Our Staff

Jessica Connor

Director of Marketing and Development

Connor came to The Bascom in April 2007 from an award-winning newspaper career, most recently editor of the Crossroads Chronicle, Cashiers, NC. She manages The Bascom’s communications, marketing and fundraising. Connor holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism and a master’s in English, and taught college writing for several years (and writes fiction in her spare time). She is active with the Rotary Club of Cashiers Valley and the Cashiers Community Fund, an affiliate of the Community Foundation of Western North Carolina.

Kaye Gorecki

Artistic Director

Gorecki joined The Bascom in 2003. For the past five years she has worked closely with The Bascom board to bring the new fine art center from dream to reality. She holds degrees in art education from the University of Central Florida and music education from Stetson University. Her National Board Certification is in visual art, middle grades through adult. She is a practicing artist and enjoys creating and exhibiting her realistic architectural illustrations and mixed media creations. Gorecki is active with the Rotary Club of Highlands among other regional affiliations and she is a board member and officer of the Macon County Arts (NC) Council.

Mary James

Finance Associate

James came to The Bascom in 2005 after years in bookkeeping and office management. Originally from Cashiers, NC, James attended Southwestern Community College. She is currently pursuing her associate’s degree in accounting from Ashworth University and is also a certified Quickbooks Pro advisor.

Darlene Marett

Administrative Assistant

Marett joined The Bascom in 2007 after a career in retail sales, artistry and nonprofit work. She has an associate’s degree in advertising and graphics and attended Moore College of Art and the Art Institute, both in Philadelphia. She helped one of her professors start a school, A Jeweler’s Way, in Canton, NC. Marett has worked as a blacksmithing apprentice at Norse Forge, in Asheville. She served as a buyer for Urban Outfitters and later ran a large-scale distribution center for vintage clothing in Seattle.

Margie Shambaugh

Volunteer Coordinator

A retired art educator, Shambaugh most recently managed volunteer services for the Appleton Museum, in Ocala, FL. She is a member of the North Carolina International Porcelain Art Teachers Inc. (past president) and Highlands China Porcelain Artists (past president). She holds a bachelor’s degree in fine arts from the University of Florida and a pilots’ license, and she has studied at Penland School of Crafts and abroad.

Linda Steigleder

Executive Director

Since January 2008, Steigleder has led The Bascom. She had been director of Hill-Stead Museum in Farmington, CT since 1999. Her master’s and bachelor’s degrees are in art history, from Syracuse University and The College of William and Mary, and she graduated from the Museum Management Institute, a leadership program of the J. Paul Getty Trust and University of California. Growing up in Virginia her interests focused on landscape design, math and economics. But “one look at a Paul Cezanne Mount Saint Victoire painting at the National Gallery in Washington, DC, turned all that on end. During my second year in college, I began focusing on art history, studying with curators at the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation and volunteering at The Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Museum.” She has held key positions at the Danforth Museum of Art, Framingham, MA; Storm King Art Center, Mountainville, NY; Georgia Museum of Art, The University of GA, Athens; and The Everson Museum of Art, Syracuse, NY.

Michael Strahan

Director of Finance and Administration

Since 2007, Strahan has managed The Bascom’s financial reporting and controls. He hails from Panama City, FL, where he recently served as the accounting director for Primecare of NW Florida. He has held positions with Hilton, Inc.; Merrill Lynch Private Investor Group; Bay Credit Union; Wittner and Company; Jack Eckerd Corporation; and McClure and Co. CPAs. His bachelor’s degree is in business administration (accounting major), University of South Florida.

Donna Woods

Director of Events

Since 2007, Woods has managed art center meetings and functions, including the annual festivals and benefit events. With her extensive background in catering, special events planning and volunteer work, Woods said her new role with The Bascom is one more way she can help further art in the Highlands-Cashiers area. “The art center has always been a special place for me. The new campus will be such an important place for the community and for people who visit Highlands.” Woods is co-owner of Lakeside Restaurant in Highlands.