Opera Conference 2026's third plenary session, "Advocate Like a Pro," looked at how effective advocacy strategies can sustain and grow support for the art form. Watch to:
Amanda Fuchs Miller provides advocacy, policy, oversight, and communications support for nonprofit organizations, higher education institutions, and foundations. She has more than three decades of experience working inside and outside of government. Most recently, Amanda served as an appointee in the Biden-Harris Administration as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Higher Education Programs in the U.S. Department of Education. Amanda previously served in several senior positions in the U.S. Senate, and in the Obama and Clinton Administrations. She has also served as a lobbyist for several nonprofit organizations and has led numerous advocacy trainings.
Jessica Ball has built a career around a simple conviction: that the arts have the power to transform lives and strengthen communities. As Director of the Delaware Division of the Arts, she leads a 12-person team and stewards an $8 million budget in service of artists, arts organizations, and community projects across the state. Under her leadership, the Division has secured a $2.5 million increase in arts funding and launched the nation's first Arts Equity and Innovation Incubator. Previously, as Executive Director of the Delaware Arts Alliance, she helped establish Delaware's Arts & Culture Caucus and secured a $1 million grant for the state's Creative Economy and Cultural Tourism Growth Plan. Ball also serves on the boards of the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies, Mid Atlantic Arts and is a member of the Delaware Fund for Women.
Melissa Hopkins is the Executive Vice President & Chief External Affairs Officer at DANA, the Delaware Alliance for Nonprofit Advancement and serves as the Executive Director of the Delaware Nonprofit Action Network (DNAN). With over a decade of experience in nonprofit leadership and public policy, she has been a driving force in advancing advocacy efforts for Delaware’s nonprofit sector.
Previously, Melissa served as Director of External Affairs at the Rodel Foundation of Delaware, where she played a key role in shaping state education policy. She also worked as a Legislative Aide for the Delaware House of Representatives Majority Leader and Majority Whip.
Melissa is a member of the KIDS Count Delaware Board and, where she helps shape policies that impact children, families across the state. She holds an MSM in Public Administration from Wilmington University, a BA in Political Science from the University of Delaware and is a 2013 Leadership Delaware Fellow Alumni.
She has served on multiple nonprofit boards and remains an active advisor with the YMCA Youth in Government program.
Ramón Jones is a dynamic arts and nonprofit leader whose career spans the creative sector, higher education, and social impact. A classically trained vocalist and graduate of Xavier University of Louisiana, he has performed internationally across Europe, Asia, and North America, grounding his leadership in firsthand artistic experience. He previously served as Operations Administrator for the Rhythm & Blues Foundation, where he helped honor pioneering artists while administering grants supporting musicians facing financial and medical hardship. Ramón later deepened his expertise in arts management through studies in Arts Administration at Drexel University and leadership work at The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, guiding students on global academic immersions focused on operations strategy and innovation. With over 20 years of experience in the music industry, he currently serves as Executive Director of the Recording Academy Philadelphia Chapter - the organization that presents The GRAMMY Awards, where he leads initiatives that advocate for music creators and elevate the recording industry across Pennsylvania, Delaware, and South Jersey, while remaining deeply committed to mentorship, volunteer service, and global cultural exploration.
Michael J. Bobbitt joined OPERA America as president and CEO in January 2026. Bobbitt is a nationally recognized arts executive, producer, and artist whose career bridges public policy, organizational transformation, and creative practice. Before coming to OPERA America, he served as executive director of the Mass Cultural Council in Boston since 2021. As Massachusetts’ highest-ranking public official for arts and culture, he led strategy, operations, and cross-sector partnerships for a $29.7B creative economy. During his tenure, the agency secured $60.1 million in COVID relief; state appropriations grew from $18.2 million to $26.9 million; and the arts were explicitly embedded in statewide health, education, and economic policies.
Before public service, Bobbitt led two producing theaters. As producing artistic director of New Repertory Theatre (Massachusetts) from 2019 to 2021, he repositioned the company around inclusion and community engagement while growing audiences, ticket revenue, contributed income, and board giving. From 2007 to 2019, as artistic director of Adventure Theatre MTC (Maryland), he oversaw major audience growth, quadrupled fundraising, commissioned more than 50 new works, earned national media attention, merged with a theater academy to strengthen education pipelines, and pioneered sensory-friendly/autism-inclusive performances that became a national model.
Bobbitt’s work as a playwright, director, and choreographer includes adaptations and premieres such as Bob Marley’s Three Little Birds, The Stephen Schwartz Project, The Yellow Rose of Texas, The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars and Motor Kings, Caps for Sale, Garfield: The Musical with Cattitude, Jumanji, Make Way for Ducklings, Big the Musical (TYA), and Monster Mash, the Musical. His work has garnered multiple Helen Hayes nominations, including one for the Charles MacArthur Award for Outstanding New Play or Musical. Directing and choreography credits span the National Philharmonic, Washington National Opera (with Washington Performing Arts), Ford’s Theatre, Shakespeare Theatre Company, Studio Theatre, the Kennedy Center, La Jolla Playhouse, Singapore Repertory Theatre, Center Stage, and others.
A trumpet and voice major in college, Bobbitt later studied theater at CAP21 (NYU Tisch) and the American Musical and Dramatic Academy and dance at The Washington Ballet. He holds an M.B.A. in arts innovation and a B.A. summa cum laude in interdisciplinary studies, with executive education at Harvard Kennedy School, Harvard Business School, and National Arts Strategies’ Chief Executive Program. He has taught at Boston Conservatory at Berklee, The Catholic University of America, Howard University, George Washington University, and other institutions.
