Team

Emily Liao Master, Principal

Emily (she/her/hers) is committed to challenging the norm by guiding individuals and organizations to embrace new perspectives and approaches, emphasizing both excellence and compassion in their endeavors. For more than 20 years, she has helped shape policies, practices, and programs to make the arts, ranging from performing to visual, more widely accessible and appreciated.

  • Emily’s clients range from institutions of higher learning and multidisciplinary arts centers to youth and professional orchestras across the United States. She actively supports arts organizations at the highest levels of artistic excellence seeking to build or improve their equity and inclusion practices and diversity outcomes. 

    For many years, Emily’s professional home was the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, where in addition to roles in the marketing, artistic planning, and audience development departments. Emily also served as Chief of Staff for the U.S. head of Russell Reynolds Associates, one of the largest global executive search and leadership advisory firms, working on a range of strategic and operational initiatives, including the firm’s nonprofit and diversity and inclusion practices. Most recently, Emily was Executive Director of the Friends of the Israel Antiquities Authority, a connector of people and projects related to the cultural and material heritage of the land of Israel.

    Emily received her AB in Music cum laude from Princeton University and her MBA from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management.

Stanford Thompson, Principal

Stanford (he/him/his) is a leading voice in promoting cultural equity and advancing change for nonprofit organizations across the sector. He works closely with the boards and staff of arts and cultural organizations, educational institutions, institutional funders, and national service organizations to evaluate the effectiveness of programming and identify solutions to deepen and broaden their impact.

  • Stanford founded and led the internationally recognized music education organization Play On Philly, served as the founding board chair of El Sistema USA, and founded and currently serves as executive director of Equity Arc. In those roles, he has led complex strategic planning and organizational design projects that have helped implement new local and national ventures to equitably serve communities and artists. He has also been a collaborator with WolfBrown for a decade on strategic planning, program evaluation, and establishing new ventures with the support of national institutional funders. 

    Stanford holds a faculty position with the Global Leaders Institute; serves on the boards of the Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance, Astral Artists, and The Presser Foundation; and holds degrees from The Curtis Institute of Music and New England Conservatory.

Elizabeth Thompson, Associate Consultant

Liz (she/her/hers) is a process investigator forever seeking aha moments in personal growth, for herself and others. She likes unpacking nonlinear gray ideas and rethinking them into workable action plans that make space for deeper learning and awareness. Considering resources, incorporating diverse perspectives, and building networks brings a thoughtful and thorough approach to her work. She's curious about experiential facilitation methods and collective learning experiences.

  • Liz most recently led creative sector engagement at the Arts + Business Council (ABC), formerly a Council of the Chamber of Commerce for Greater Philadelphia. She engaged with arts leaders and stakeholders across sectors and creative disciplines, and oversaw leadership and professional development programs and alumni activities while managing operations, development, social media, and advisory board engagement. She is proud to have successfully transitioned ABC to the Nonprofit Center at La Salle University in less than a year and remains involved. Other recent professional engagements include participating in programs by the Artist Communities Alliance and Women of Color in the Arts and facilitating board retreats and board development workshops. She is an active member of the Nonprofit Professionals of Color Collective, Museum Council of Greater Philadelphia, and Ascend Greater Philadelphia, among others.

    Liz previously led operations and people management at Asian Arts Initiative, a multi-disciplinary and community-based arts center that advances racial equity and understanding through creative practice. At the Conference on Asian Pacific American Leadership, she oversaw internal and external activities for an organization seeking to empower the next generation of Asian American leaders in public service. As a board member of the Arts Administrators of Color Network, she led the hiring process for the organization's first executive director and developed organizational activities that support and bring together artists and arts administrators of color nationally. On the Spruce Foundation's board of directors, which cultivates the next generation of philanthropists through community giving, she co-led the grantmaking process to support emerging organizations in the arts, health and wellness, education, and LGBTQ+ communities in the Philadelphia area. Liz received her BA in Art History from Western Washington University and MA in East Asian Languages and Civilizations from the University of Pennsylvania.

    Originally from Washington State, Liz has spent time in the Washington, DC metropolitan area and Philadelphia. She is a dog mom, thrifter, roller coaster enthusiast, and ardent reader.

Emma Terrell, Collaborator

Emma Terrell (she/her/hers) is an arts education researcher, evaluator, and practitioner. Her work focuses on developing evaluation strategies to support organizations' goals of improving culturally-sustaining educational experiences through the arts and storytelling. Emma has worked with a variety of educational organizations within the arts, philanthropic, and entertainment industries, such as Carnegie Hall, the William Penn Foundation, Mattel, Disney, and Nickelodeon. As a research collaborator with WolfBrown, Emma has led collaborative evaluations for PlayUSA, the Lullaby Project, and the Community Music Center of Boston to create effective and relevant educational programs. Emma holds a Bachelor of Music from Rice University and a Master of Education from Harvard University.

Paige Kerrigan, Operations Manager & Project Associate

Paige Kerrigan (she/her/hers) serves as the Operations Manager & Project Associate for Goldsmith Strategies, where she leverages her expertise in arts administration to ensure seamless project execution and organizational efficiency. Drawing on her experience in managing administrative operations, Paige excels at overseeing complex logistics, streamlining processes, and supporting client needs with precision and care. Her ability to balance multiple priorities while maintaining a meticulous focus on details has been instrumental in delivering consistent results for each project.

Paige’s background as a professional musician enhances her understanding of the arts and culture sector, allowing her to bring a nuanced perspective to her work in consulting. With a focus on operational effectiveness, she has contributed to a variety of projects, driving forward results through expert budget management, timeline oversight, and office administration. Paige holds degrees from the University of South Alabama and the University of Northern Colorado.

Strategic Partnerships

Goldsmith Strategies partners with other leading consultancies to combine expertise in research, planning, assessments, and analysis with our deep on-the-ground knowledge of cultural organizations. Our partners include WolfBrown, a leading arts research and planning firm, Aspen Leadership Group, which specializes in executive search and leadership consulting, and Conlon Public Strategies, a respected strategic advising and public affairs firm based in Chicago.