Team

BPOC's team is composed of experienced cultural technology professionals with strong backgrounds in communications, project management, technology, and community building. They share a vision for broadening audiences for cultural and scientific content, using technology to serve and extend the missions of museums.

Staff & Contractors

Updated 4/2013

Vivian Kung Haga, Director and Chief Executive Officer, has more than 20 years of experience in cultural institutions as an administrator, curator, and educator. Before joining the Balboa Park Online Collaborative, she was at the Museum of Photographic Arts, San Diego for over nine years, first as their Director of Education and then as their Deputy Director. She oversaw the daily operations of the museum, as well as Information Technology, Operations, Facilities, Accounting, Human Resources, Visitor Relations, the Museum Store, and Marketing.  She also led the Museum in cutting-edge technology, accessibility, and visitor experience initiatives including a collaboration with the University of California, San Diego, and the National Institution of Information and Communication Technology in Japan.  This three-way collaboration led to the creation of an innovative touch table interface built on an open source framework that allows visitors to become curators.

Prior to her tenure at the Museum of Photographic Arts, she was a consulting Curator for ArtReach International, a traveling exhibition company, and for The Dixon Gallery and Gardens in Memphis, Tennessee.  She was also the Assistant Curator at the Dixon Gallery and Gardens where she curated exhibitions, produced traveling exhibitions, and assisted in the publication of several catalogs.  She held positions at Cleveland Museum of Art, where she was part of the team that created the Cleveland Museum of Art’s first audio tour of over 300 messages.  She also has experience in the private gallery field.  Her first museum position was as an intern at the San Diego Museum of Art.  She has a MA in the History of Art from Ohio State University and a BA in Art History from the University of California, San Diego.  She has been on the advisory board for the NMC Horizon Report > Museum Edition.

Chris Borkowski, Lead Developer, is a media maker from Buffalo, NY. Most recently he was the Senior Web and Intranet Developer for the Guggenheim Museum. He is also a co-founder of [PAM]  and a member of Artists Meeting. He has worked professionally as a web developer, video editor, network administrator, media arts center Technical Director, and University instructor in digital arts. He has shown his artwork internationally at various galleries and media festivals and has also performed a number of real-time audio and video pieces. He likes sunsets, long walks in the park, the shape of pixels, social climbers, hackers, misfits and charlatans. His favorite colors are RGB. He finds name dropping and writing his own bio the biggest turn off.

Bill Bostick, Director of Web Development, has worked in software development for over 25 years. He spent the past five years running RoopleTheme, a private web consulting firm. Bill’s company provided web development services for many companies in the music and entertainment industries, and he has helped develop numerous high profile websites. As an Engineering Manager for Emulex Network Systems, Bill was the lead architect for a patented Storage Area Network management suite that is used extensively by Fortune 500 companies, and he managed the development team that brought this product to market. Bill also served as an IT manager for a prominent Southern California Civil Engineering firm, and he managed the Technical Support team for a large computer hardware manufacturer in Orange County. Bill is an active member of the Drupal community, and his contributed themes and modules are in use on Drupal sites throughout the world.

Marcos Corro, Web Developer, is a freelance web development professional who has also worked with schools providing IT support, tutoring and teaching computer classes. Marcos also worked at Sony SML as a Software Developer and Systems Analyst. He is bilingual in English/Spanish and has a B.S. in Computer Engineering.

Christina DePaolo, Director of Digital Media and Vice-President, previously worked for the Seattle Art Museum as its New Media Manager. In this role, Christina worked with a cross-departmental team to expand the Museum’s online presence and initiate new media projects. She led the museum through several website redesigns and worked with the staff to expand the way the museum was using the internet to communicate cultural ideas and provide access to the arts to a broader audience. She is the President of the Museum Computer Network, a program committee member for the IMLS WebWise Conference, and has served as a panelist at many national museum conferences such as Museums and the Web. At BPOC, she has project managed more than 25 website and mobile development projects including the multi-institutional Balboa Park Commons initiative. Originally from New York, Christina is a graduate of Hunter College.

Maren Dougherty, Director of External Affairs and Corporate Secretary, is an online communications professional with experience leading marketing and advocacy campaigns for museums and other cultural institutions; human rights organizations; and multi-institutional collaborations. A graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University, Maren has contributed to publications that include Fodor's Travel Guides, San Diego Magazine, National Geographic Adventure, New York Magazine, and UT San Diego. She has more than four years experience managing communications and advocacy for Survivors of Torture, International, a nonprofit organization that serves refugees and asylum seekers. She is serving on the program committee for the 2013 Museums and the Web conference and previously served on the committee for the 2012 IMLS WebWise Conference.

Wesley Hsu, UX/UI Designer, is a recent graduate of the University of California, San Diego. He holds a B.S. in Cognitive Science with a focus in Human-Computer Interaction. He has experience with web design, user experience design, and interface design. Previously he collaborated with the Museum of Photographic Arts and a Japanese technology research organization to launch two cross-cultural interdisciplinary interactive touch table exhibits. He has a passion for creating friendly and engaging user experiences. He also teaches robotics to 1st through 5th graders.  In his spare time, he enjoys hiking, biking, studying languages, cooking, and traveling. He makes a pretty mean stir-fry.

Anna Chiaretta Lavatelli, Video Project Manager, began working with video editing in-camera on VHS tapes and linear editing with U-matic tape. She received her BA in Media Studies at the University at Buffalo and an MFA in Visual Arts at the University of California San Diego where she also taught video production, performance art and film history. A video installation artist with a background in small-gauge film and photography, she closely follows the rapidly changing landscape of video technology for both production and display, specifically in context of the gallery and museum. She worked as a technician for the Guggenheim Museum and developed video content for The San Diego Museum of Art, as well as with numerous individual artists providing consultation for projects and overseeing production of live events and finished video works.  All that said, she still dreams in Kodachrome.

Perian Sully, Project Manager: Digital Asset Management and Online Access, is a digital humanities technologist specializing in helping museums put their collections online and make them accessible in innovative ways. Before joining BPOC, Perian was the Collection Information Manager and Web Programs Strategist at the Magnes in Berkeley, and was instrumental in creating the Magnes' integrated archives-library-museum collection management system and online database, the institutional website, and in launching a host of digital programs. She has also worked at San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, The Richard L. Nelson Gallery & Fine Arts Collection, UC Davis and the Visual Resources Library, UC Davis. She received her Masters degree in Museum Studies from John F. Kennedy University and a Bachelors degree in Studio Art from UC Davis. In addition, Perian is the Program Chair for the Media & Technology Standing Professional Committee of the American Association of Museums and she is a regular contributor to the Musematic blog.

Jason Quinn, Director of IT, was most recently part of the Information Technology department at the San Diego Natural History Museum providing tech support for SDNHM and other institutions around Balboa Park.  A recent transplant to San Diego, he began his career in Philadelphia.  As part of Drexel University's School of Education, Jason worked with local schools and academic institutions carrying out the School's mission of providing support to local academic organizations.  Happily married, he is now devoting his time to furthering the technological goals of the BPOC and the institutions in Balboa Park.

Andre Rowe, IT Support Technician, served in the U.S. Navy for five years as a Gunner’s Mate. After being honorably discharged from the military he knew he wanted to get into the information technology field. One of the biggest problems he faced after leaving the Navy was a lack of technology experience that correlated with the civilian world in his field of interest. He joined the BPOC because of the opportunity to acquire a diverse technical skill set. Andre provides desktop support to several of the cultural organizations in the park. In addition to his internship at the Balboa Park Online Collaborative, he is currently attending ITT studying Computer Networking Systems.

Drew Mandinach, Digital Media Producer, joined BPOC in June of 2012 as a recent graduate from the University of California, San Diego.  As a performance artist with a background in Ethnic Studies, he is interested in the formation of identity, particularly the intersection of race, gender, and sexuality, as it is formed in different institutions and spaces. He is very interested in the museum space as a site of questioning new and old assumptions about art and artistic practices. Having interned with BPOC before becoming staff, Drew is very excited to work for BPOC and continue to help make videos for the diverse cultural institutions in Balboa Park.

BPOC staff love museums, technology, and sharing their expertise with others. Have a question for the staff? Email bpoc@bpoc.org and your question will be forwarded to the appropriate contact.