Celebrated Education Executive Sheree Meyer to become next president

SACRAMENTO, CA – July 25, 2023 – The Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera (SP&O) announces the transfer of the baton of leadership with the election of Sheree Meyer as the next President of its Board of Directors.

Meyer, who succeeds John Shirey, is Dean of the College of Arts & Letters at Sacramento State University. She has studied music throughout her life and has committed herself to providing others with opportunities to appreciate and participate in music. She joined the Board of Directors of the Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera in 2016 and served most recently as its Vice President from 2021-2023.

“Music has long been important in my life, and as I step into the role of president, I look forward to working with our dedicated musicians, staff, and volunteers to build upon the SP&O’s recent successes,” said Sheree Meyer, incoming SP&O president. “Together, we are poised to make an even greater influence in the Sacramento community, and I am honored to lead this important work.”

A member of the Sacramento State community since 1991, Meyer’s interest in fields such as history, literature, music, and performance began at a young age, and she has continued to perform in plays and musicals, sing in choirs, and study music throughout her life. Since becoming Dean of the College of Arts & Letters, she has dedicated herself to bringing the students, faculty, and staff of the college into creative collaborations with other arts and cultural organizations in Sacramento. In 2019, she led the College of Arts & Letters in receiving and implementing a City of Sacramento Creative Economy Pilot Project Grant.

Meyer served as a member of Sacramento’s Creative Edge Steering Committee and currently serves on the boards of Blue Line Arts and the Sacramento Alliance of Regional Arts. She is a proud recipient of California Lawyers for the Arts “Artistic License Award” for her contributions to art and education.

“SP&O couldn’t ask for a more broadly experienced or more highly principled advocate than Sheree Meyer,” said SP&O Executive Director Giuliano Kornberg. “As a remarkably successful community leader, she is determined to use arts and culture to make the world a better place. We’re honored to have her as our esteemed president of the Board of Directors and look forward to benefiting from her wisdom and passion.”  

During her tenure as president of the SP&O, Meyer plans to prioritize strengthening and expanding SP&O’s musical and educational impact on the region, growing, diversifying, and developing its board, and enhancing its collaborations with other Sacramento arts, educational, and cultural organizations.

Meyer succeeds John Shirey, who led the SP&O as its Board President from 2021-2023. Under Shirey’s leadership, the SP&O returned to live performances after COVID, reached a three-year agreement with the Local Musician’s Union, and appointed Ari Pelto as its first Artistic Advisor and Principal Conductor. The SP&O’s recently completed 2022-23 season ended with a chorus of unprecedented achievements, including a reliable and growing subscription base, sold out performances and, since 2015, over $10 million in gifts and sponsorships made to the Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera and the Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera Foundation.

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Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera

With its mission to build community, inspire a love of the performing arts, and enrich lives through music, the Sacramento Philharmonic & Opera is the collaborative leader in the cultural growth of the Greater Sacramento Region having reclaimed its place as one of the region’s leading performing arts organizations. Since its triumphant return in 2015, the SP&O has made tremendous artistic, community, and fiscal strides through a business model that has solidly moved from one of instability to one of stability.

Today, the SP&O serves as a vibrant cultural community asset – one that is shaped by Sacramento, whose offerings are uniquely of Sacramento, and whose vision for the future is designed for Sacramento. The SP&O continues its stellar concerts, operas, and community engagement programs that bring the passion of classical music to schools, hospitals, shelters, and more. We look forward to continually benefiting this region through our work and expanding our impact and how we’re able to serve this growing, thriving community.