Administration

Kathleen Collins, president

A native of Chicago, President Collins holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology, with a minor in fine arts, from Stanford University in California. She earned a master of fine arts degree in photography from the Rochester Institute of Technology.

President Collins is a nationally exhibited photographer, and her works are included in the collections of the Art Institute of Chicago, the Cleveland Art Museum, the Indiana University Art Museum, the Centro Cultural/Arte Contemporaneo in Mexico City, Mexico and the Chrysler Museum in Norfolk, Va.

President's Cabinet 

Ronald Cattelino, executive vice president for administration

Ron Cattelino joined KCAI in 1971 as chief accountant. Since then he has held a variety of posts, including interim president of the college for one year. He has been active in various community groups and serves on the board of the Women's Christian Association and as a founding board member of the Community Association of Nonprofit Business Executives. He holds a bachelor's degree in business administration with a major in accounting from Pittsburg State University in Kansas.

Bambi Burgard, Ph.D. interim vice president for enrollment management and associate vice president for student achievement

Bambi Burgard joined KCAI in 2000 as assistant dean for academic affairs and director of the academic resource center. In 2006, she became associate vice president for student achievement and since 2008 has served the college as interim vice president for enrollment management. Before coming to KCAI, she worked in the student counseling center at University of Missouri-Kansas City and in private practice. Burgard earned her doctorate in counseling psychology from University of Missouri-Kansas City and is a licensed psychologist in Missouri and Kansas. 

Anne Canfield, vice president for communications

Anne Canfield joined KCAI in 2002 from the Kauffman Foundation, where she had been vice president for communications. Before that she spent nearly 16 years as a communications consultant with Fleishman-Hillard Inc., an international public relations consulting firm, where she was a senior vice president and partner. She holds a bachelor's degree in English from Stanford University in California, studied on the graduate level at the University of Michigan and is an accredited member of the Public Relations Society of America.

Larry Dickerson, vice president and Chief Information Officer

Larry Dickerson joined KCAI in 2006 from William Jewell College, where he served as director of information services, spanning 27 years as an administrator, teacher, speaker and coach. He holds a bachelor’s degree from William Jewell in physics and philosophy and a master’s degree in divinity from Yale University.

Mark Salmon, Ph.D. vice president for academic affairs

Mark Salmon, Ph.D., joined KCAI in 2007 as vice president for academic affairs. Previously he held the same title at Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angeles. Before that, he was academic dean at The Atlanta College of Art, and earlier he was chair of the humanities and sciences division at the School of Visual Arts in New York. Salmon earned his doctorate degree in sociology from New York University. His academic career has encompassed teaching, writing and administration.

Pam Sibert, vice president for advancement

Pam Sibert joined KCAI in 2003 as executive director of development and was promoted to vice president for advancement in 2004. Before moving to the nonprofit sector, she careered in print and electronic media, advertising, public relations and audio/video production. For 30 years she has been a fundraising professional in education and the arts. She hold a bachelor's degree from Kansas State University and a master's degree from the University of Central Missouri.

Shirley O'Leary, associate vice president for special programs

Shirley O’Leary joined KCAI in 2000 and has worked in education for the past 20 years as both faculty and administration. She was director of the Earnest Shepherd Memorial Youth Center (a program of the University of Missouri-Columbia Extension); director of development and co-head of Kansas City Academy; and regional director of marketing and recruitment and adjunct faculty member for Friends University-NW Region. She holds a bachelor’s degree in human relations from Ottawa University and a master’s in management information systems from Friends University.