Meet the BACC Board: Dana springs

As one of the few nonprofit regional conservation centers in the United States, and the only such center in the western region, the Balboa Art Conservation Center is undergoing transformational change as it shifts into a radically inclusive and accessible art conservation organization. The BACC Board helps nourish this shift while ensuring the organization's vision for inclusion has long-term systemic impact. 

The BACC Board of Trustees is led by Board President Dana Springs and boasts a board membership that is 50% BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color). In addition to its racial diversity, BACC board members are located throughout BACC’s service area, including Seattle, the Bay Area, Los Angeles, and San Diego. They bring a range and depth of expertise in community organizing, arts management and advocacy, fundraising, conservation, education, and financial management. Their diverse perspectives and skills are essential as BACC seeks to fulfill its vision for equity and healing within our own structure and workplace, as well as the communities we serve. 

Throughout 2023, we are highlighting each of our Board Members to better understand what excites them about being a part of the BACC Team at this transformative time. 

For our first Board Member highlight, we spoke with Dana Springs, Board President. Dana Springs (she/her/hers) is the Deputy Chief for Administration at the San Diego Volunteer Lawyer Program. Born and raised in Dana Point, Orange County, Dana has long been an active member of the arts and nonprofit communities of San Diego, holding a BA in visual arts from UCSD. 

​BACC: How does your professional, community, and/or cultural work inform your role as a BACC Board Member? 

Dana: I have past experience managing an institutional art collection, in addition to my experience managing a nonprofit, so this is where my experience intersects. Grants management and finance management for nonprofits can be challenging. Knowing how to manage the various resources– human, financial, tangible assets, etc.- can be very difficult. 

B: What excites you most about being on the BACC Board? 

D: I am most excited by the vision and management style of our Executive Director, Leticia Gomez Franco. She is extraordinarily resourceful, imaginative, ambitious, and hopeful, which makes her exciting to collaborate with. She can see possibilities for the organization that no one has ever seen before and she has been able to attract resources to this organization beyond anyone’s imagination.

B: If you could have one artwork or artifact (personal or otherwise) conserved by the BACC team, what would it be and why? 

D: BACC has actually conserved two pieces from my personal art collection in the past! I had an abstract painting on canvas that had been punctured, and the conservators mended it to look like nothing ever happened! Ever since they restored it, the painting has  been on display in four different locations in San Diego.
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