Our Team
The Minneapolis Athenaeum is guided by a collaborative team of executive staff, community partners, dedicated board members, and strategic advisors. Bringing together hands-on expertise in literary arts, strategic growth, and cultural engagement, our team works to preserve and share our historic collections while opening our doors wider to the community. Together, we are honoring a legacy that began in 1859 while building vibrant partnerships and public programs that inspire curiosity and strengthen civic life.
Jeremy Moore
Board PresidentJeremy Moore serves as President of the Minneapolis Athenaeum Board of Directors. A fine art and antiques specialist with more than 30 years of experience, he owns Jeremy Moore Fine Art, which specializes in appraising, acquiring, and selling Asian art, antiques, and cultural objects. His expertise in fine art, building collections and cultural preservation helps guide the Athenaeum's mission to safeguard and share Minnesota's literary and artistic heritage.
Tim Carroll
Tim Carroll serves as Treasurer and a longtime member of the Minneapolis Athenaeum Board of Directors. A preservation professional, archivist, and collector, he serves as Preservation Society Manager for Hennepin Arts and founded the Minnesota Underground Music Archive at the University of Minnesota's Performing Arts Archives. His expertise in rare books, antiques, and special collections has supported cultural organizations across Minnesota.
Board Treasurer
Jon Erickson serves as Secretary of the Minneapolis Athenaeum Board of Directors. An accomplished Minnesota criminal defense attorney, he has dedicated his career to advocating for clients throughout the state's criminal justice system. Jon is a recipient of the Distinguished Service Award from the Minnesota Board of Public Defense and has been recognized as a Super Lawyer for his excellence in criminal defense. His decades of legal experience and commitment to public service provide valuable governance and leadership to the Athenaeum.
Board SecretaryJon P. Erickson
Heid E. Erdrich has authored seven poetry collections and an Indigenous foods book. Erdrich’s 2024 book Verb Animate combines poetry and prompts for writing. She edited the anthology New Poets of Native Nations and co-edited the 2025 publication Boundless: Abundance in Native American Art and Literature. Her honors include a National Poetry Series award for Little Big Bully, awards from the Academy of American Poets, Library of Congress, Native Arts and Cultures Foundation, and McKnight Foundation. She served as inaugural Minneapolis Poet Laureate in 2024 and the Camille Gage Fellow in 2025-2026. Erdrich is Ojibwe and enrolled at Turtle Mountain.
Community Engagement ConsultantHeid E. Erdrich
Katy Tessman
Executive DirectorKaty Tessman brings more than a decade of experience to her role as Executive Director of the Minneapolis Athenaeum. In her school library career, she curated diverse, relevant book collections for schools nationwide, led a school's transformation into a vibrant makerspace and community hub. She also brings a strong nonprofit background, developing communications campaigns, public events, and outreach initiatives across arts communities and mission-centered organizations that strengthen engagement and create authentic community connection.
Named a Changemaker by the Minnesota Women's Press, Katy holds a degree in communications from Minnesota State University-Moorhead. She is also an award-winning author, literacy advocate, and musician.
Joan Vorderbruggen serves as the Minneapolis Athenaeum's Bridge Strategy Consultant, guiding the organization through a period of renewal, stabilization, and strategic growth. Working closely with the Board of Directors, she supports organizational development, governance, communications, fundraising planning, partnerships, and the search for the Athenaeum's next Executive Director. With a background in community engagement, arts leadership, nonprofit strategy, and coaching, Joan helps connect the Athenaeum's historic legacy with a sustainable and vibrant future.
Bridge Strategy Consultant