MEET THE STAFF
ALAIN BARKER – Director
Office: (812) 856-5719 | Email | LinkedIn
MM & DM: IU Jacobs School of Music | BM: Cape Town (South Africa)
Alain Barker has an entrepreneurial career that includes arts organization development, arts policy research, communications and marketing, teaching, and performance. He joined the Office of Entrepreneurship and Career Development as its founding director in July 2014. From 2004-2014, Alain directed Jacobs School of Music marketing and publicity operations. He was executive director of the Bloomington Early Music Festival and has also worked as a consultant to several nonprofits. Alain was principal flute in the Marion Philharmonic and co-principal flute in Oviedo, Spain. He has served on a number of local board and commissions, including the City of Bloomington Arts Commission, the Bloomington Rotary Club (president), the Buskirk-Chumley Theater, WFIU (Public Radio), the IU Innovation Advisory Committee, IU Career Services Council (president), and the IU Arts & Humanities Council.
LISA MILLER – Career Advisor
Office: (812) 856-3256 | Email | LinkedIn
DM: IU Jacobs School of Music | MA (Secondary Education and Teacher): Oakland City University | MM: Indiana State
Lisa is an alumna of the Jacobs school of Music (DM, Voice). She has spent twenty-five years in higher education teaching music in community colleges, teaching voice and music theory. She also has a strong background in academic advising and curriculum development. Lisa’s professional focus has always been about meeting students where they are and to help them get to where they want to be. In her free time, Lisa enjoys cooking and spending time with her husband, children, and grandchildren.
RUTHIE WILLIAMSON – Career Advisor
Office: (812) 855-6032 | Email | LinkedIn
MM: IU Jacobs School of Music | BA in Music: Northwestern College
An alumna of the JSoM and a former teacher and academic advisor, Ruthie Williamson’s professional career has always been about student support and empowerment. After completing her bachelor’s degree in music, she taught English to junior high and high schoolers in southern Japan. When she returned to the US, Ruthie taught and designed several music theory and music appreciation courses as an adjunct instructor while completing a master’s degree and working towards a PhD in Music Theory at JSoM. She then worked in several offices at IU Bloomington before returning to Jacobs as an academic advisor. Now a career advisor in the OECD, Ruthie meets one-on-one with music students to explore career and job opportunities, to assist them with their portfolio, and to empower them as emerging performing arts professionals. She also presents workshops and occasionally teaches the Music Career Development course. In her free time, Ruthie enjoys playing video games, crafting, and spending time with her husband and her two longhaired dachshunds, Bailey and Guinness.
MEET THE STUDENT LEADERSHIP TEAM
Each year, the OECD invites talented student leaders to join the team to help with programming and student engagement.
MEET THE 2025-26 STUDENT LEADERSHIP TEAM
KATIE NAM – Media
Email | Website
Soprano Katie Nam is pursuing a Master of Music degree in voice and is in the studio of Heidi Grant Murphy. She graduated from NYU in 2023 with a Bachelor of Music in vocal performance and a minor in business of entertainment, media, and technology. She held leadership roles as president of the Classical Voice Collective, performed as the national anthem singer at Yankee Stadium, and was a Steinhardt singer at Radio City Music Hall for graduation. While at IU, she’s worked as part of the Student Life Event team at the Office of International Services and currently serves as co-executive director for New Voices Opera. As a vocalist, she appeared in the choruses of the Nutcracker and Voces Caelestes and was a finalist for the Jacobs Georgina Joshi Fellowship and the Wilfred Bain Award in Opera. In September, Katie will debut as Dinah in the IU Opera Theater production of Trouble in Tahiti. Katie looks forward to capturing special moments at OECD’s events as a Media Specialist.
AUDREY OSBURN – Communications
Email | LinkedIn
Audrey Osburn is a graduate of the Jacobs School of Music Ballet Department and current student in the Arts Management Program at the O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs. During her time at IU, Audrey has performed in many productions with IU Ballet Theatre, including Star On The Rise!, George Balanchine’s Serenade, Swan Lake, and The Nutcracker. One of her favorite experiences through Jacobs has been participating in the annual Fairview Elementary Outreach Project. Alongside her lifelong passions in ballet, Audrey is eager to assist in connecting artists with resources that enhance their career and networking opportunities through creative design and communication. Audrey looks forward to designing the year ahead!
ISAAC SMITH – Special Projects Manager
Email | LinkedIn | Website
Isaac Smith is a doctoral student in Music Composition at the Jacobs School of Music. Born in Sacramento, he completed his undergraduate at CSU, Sacramento and earned a Master’s in Music Composition from the University of Oregon. During his coursework, he was an Associate Instructor in Music Theory. In 2018, he worked as an administrator with the Oregon Bach Festival Composers Symposium, and in 2024 was the Exhibition Coordinator for IU’s very first Music in Ai Summit, AlgoRhythms. Also in 2024, Isaac was the recipient of the Morris and Sheila Hass Award in Computer Music for his piece Extension, for flute solo and AI. He enjoys video games, baking sourdough bread, and going on hikes with his wife Pafoua.
EVELYN THEINERT – Manager
Email | Stagetime
Evelyn Theinert is a German-American Harpist from Munich, Germany and is pursuing a B.M. in Harp Performance, with a minor in music composition. Besides serving in student leadership as a Harp Department Representative in the Jacobs School, Evelyn also collaborates with composers and audio engineers to premiere a multitude of film scores, chamber works, and duos, and performs as a member of the IU New Music Ensemble and Conductor’s Orchestra. Evelyn played with orchestras in Bavaria and, after moving to Indiana in 2015, she has performed with multiple regional ensembles. Evelyn has strong interest in the entrepreneurial side of the music world and has benefited from taking courses at the Kelley School of Business. She also enjoys ballroom dancing, playing golf, learning new languages, cooking and baking, singing, and serving at her church.
Merrill Hall, MU011, IU Jacobs School of Music
1201 East Third Street, Bloomington, IN 47405
Email: jsomoecd@indiana.edu