MINNEAPOLIS, MN — September 25, 2026 — VocalEssence, one of the nation’s premier choral music organizations, has formally announced the appointment of six distinguished leaders to its Board of Directors. The expansion marks a major institutional milestone for the 58-year-old nonprofit, strengthening its operational resilience, corporate governance, philanthropic strategy, and community engagement across the Twin Cities metro area and beyond.
The incoming board members bring a potent synthesis of cross-sector executive leadership, human resources strategy, medical technology management, equity-driven entrepreneurship, and national arts governance experience. As VocalEssence navigates an evolving performing arts landscape, this strategic infusion of leadership talent is designed to reinforce the organization’s financial footing while expanding its artistic and educational outreach.
Executive Overview: Strengthening a 58-Year Legacy
Founded in 1968, VocalEssence has built an international reputation for artistic excellence, community-building, and the advocacy of diverse choral repertoire. Operating as both a world-class performing ensemble and a regional cultural catalyst, the organization relies on its Board of Directors to serve a dual function: acting as strategic ambassadors within the broader community and providing fiduciary, operational, and policy oversight.
The addition of six new directors represents one of the most comprehensive governance expansions in the organization’s recent history. The appointments arrive at a pivotal juncture as performing arts nonprofits nationwide recalibrate their business models to navigate shifting demographic trends, evolving donor behavior, and changing audience engagement paradigms.
By assembling a cohort with deep roots in local economic development, Fortune 500 corporate strategy, higher education, national arts endowments, and charitable asset management, VocalEssence aims to solidify its position as an innovative force in American choral music.
Detailed Profiles: The New Cohort of Board Leadership
The newly appointed directors bring diverse professional backgrounds that intersect key operational areas essential for the long-term sustainability of VocalEssence.
1. Sooki Jalali: Entrepreneurship, Cross-Cultural Advocacy, and Economic Empowerment
Born in Seoul, South Korea, and raised in Minnesota from her teenage years, Sooki Jalali brings a rich background in biological sciences, business development, and cross-cultural community engagement. A graduate of the University of Minnesota with a Bachelor of Science in Biology and Business, Jalali is a serial entrepreneur who has founded three successful enterprises spanning the health, wellness, and business consulting sectors.
Currently serving as a Business Consultant at the Metropolitan Economic Development Association (MEDA), Jalali specializes in helping minority and ethnic business owners scale operations, secure capital, and navigate market expansion. Her governance philosophy emphasizes holistic wellness, economic equity, and authentic community building.
Jalali’s extensive civic involvement includes board and volunteer service with the Ebenezer Foundation, the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, Hunger Solutions, and the Alliance for a New Humanity. A Deepak Chopra-certified yoga instructor and former nominee for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Man and Woman of the Year fundraising campaign, Jalali brings both philanthropic acumen and grassroots community connections to the VocalEssence board.
2. Harry Miller: Organizational Strategy and Enterprise Mentorship
With more than 40 years of experience driving enterprise growth, organizational restructuring, and strategic planning, Harry Miller brings decades of operational wisdom to VocalEssence. His career has centered on helping corporate and mission-driven entities scale efficiently, develop high-performing leadership teams, and form sustainable cross-sector partnerships.
As an active mentor and volunteer leader with SCORE Twin Cities, Miller has guided scores of small business owners and nonprofit executives through strategic growth, capital allocation, and risk management. Within SCORE, he has held pivotal roles leading governance, development, volunteer management, and fundraising initiatives.
Miller’s focus on the board will center on clarifying long-term strategic directives, building robust institutional partnerships, and enhancing organizational governance to ensure VocalEssence’s operational frameworks remain resilient amid economic shifts.
3. Bunny Robinson: Human Resources Governance, Diversity, and Arts Policy
Bunny Robinson is an established human resources executive, executive headhunter, and advocate for cultural fluency. She serves as an executive consultant with Navigate Forward, a specialized firm advising C-suite executives during career transitions, and is the principal consultant of Robinson-Robinson & Associates (RRA), a retained executive search firm recognized for presenting diverse talent slates for senior management roles.
Robinson brings an extraordinary depth of arts governance experience at local, regional, and national levels. Her public service includes tenures on the Minnesota State Arts Board, Arts Midwest, and the State Programs Panel for the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) in Washington, D.C. She currently sits on the board of the Cultural Fluency Initiative.
Her broader civic footprint includes governance roles with the United Way Minneapolis, the Conflict Resolution Center, Missions Inc. Programs, and the Women’s Association of the Boys and Girls Clubs of the Twin Cities. Furthermore, Robinson serves as a contract mediator for the Minnesota Department of Education. Holding a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theatre from the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, and a Master of Arts in Organizational Leadership from St. Catherine University, Robinson blends creative artistic roots with executive-level workforce expertise.
4. Carolyn Sleeth: Commercial Scale, MedTech Leadership, and Enterprise Management
Carolyn Sleeth brings over two decades of executive leadership in the medical technology and healthcare sectors to the VocalEssence board. Most recently, Sleeth served as Senior Vice President and U.S. General Manager at Insulet Corporation, where she oversaw a 700-person commercial operation and generated sustained year-over-year revenue growth exceeding 20 percent.
Prior to her executive tenure at Insulet, Sleeth spent many years at Medtronic, where she held senior roles leading the aorta and venous vascular business units, alongside strategic roles in marketing and market development within the cardiac disease division.
Sleeth’s academic credentials include a Bachelor of Arts in History from Stanford University, a Master of Arts in Russian, and an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. Her deep experience in managing complex organizational structures, leading large commercial teams, and executing growth strategies will provide critical governance support as VocalEssence expands its earned revenue and programmatic reach.
5. Sunita Vongharath-Evenson: Executive Talent Development and Mission Alignment
Sunita Vongharath-Evenson is a high-impact human resources executive and community leader dedicated to organizational culture transformation, executive coaching, and mission-driven leadership. Throughout her career in corporate and nonprofit management, she has focused on designing talent frameworks that align organizational strategy with human-centered values.
Vongharath-Evenson’s expertise lies in building cohesive workplace cultures, navigating organizational change, and fostering sustainable community partnerships. Her strategic focus on the board will center on enhancing employee and artistic community engagement, talent retention, and institutional culture development.
6. Karen Voracek: Philanthropic Strategy, Enterprise Innovation, and Financial Stewardship
Karen Voracek serves as Vice President of Donor Experience, Marketing & Strategy at Thrivent Charitable, where she leads enterprise strategy, customer experience, marketing, product management, and donor service operations. With over 30 years of leadership experience spanning the corporate and philanthropic sectors, Voracek specializes in business transformation, brand strategy, and strategic charitable asset management.
Prior to her leadership role at Thrivent Charitable, Voracek spent nearly three decades directing high-stakes corporate marketing and business transformation initiatives. In recent years, her professional focus has centered on driving philanthropic impact, helping donors align personal values with strategic charitable giving.
Voracek holds an MBA from the University of St. Thomas and a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations and German from Carroll University. A lifelong musician who began playing the clarinet in elementary school and continues to sing in parish choirs, Voracek combines corporate rigor with a deeply personal commitment to the choral arts. She also serves on the board of the Sacred Ground Center for Spirituality.
Supporting Context & Metrics: Navigating the Modern Arts Economy
The appointment of these six directors highlights a major governance shift in the performing arts sector. Following years of post-pandemic structural shifts, arts organizations face a complex operating environment characterized by changing audience attendance patterns, inflationary pressures on production costs, and a competitive philanthropic market.
| Governance Domain | Strategic Focus Area | Appointed Board Member(s) | Key Organizational Objective |
|---|---|---|---|
| Enterprise Growth & Scale | Commercial strategy, financial modeling, scaling operations | Carolyn Sleeth, Harry Miller | Ensure financial solvency, optimize business models, expand earned revenue. |
| Human Capital & Equity | Executive search, DE&I frameworks, mediation, workplace culture | Bunny Robinson, Sunita Vongharath-Evenson | Drive inclusive hiring, build internal leadership capacity, maintain cultural fluency. |
| Philanthropy & Marketing | Donor experience, strategic giving, brand engagement | Karen Voracek | Modernize donor retention strategies, expand endowment funds, increase individual giving. |
| Community & Entrepreneurship | Minority business networks, holistic engagement, regional outreach | Sooki Jalali | Deepen connections across diverse Twin Cities communities, expand grassroots participation. |
Operational Scale and Historical Footprint
Since its inception in 1968, VocalEssence has grown from a local chamber choir into a multifaceted arts enterprise that reaches tens of thousands of listeners annually through concert seasons, educational initiatives, and community singing events.
- Institutional Longevity: 58 years of continuous artistic operation in Minnesota.
- Core Choral Ensembles: Featuring the professional VocalEssence Ensemble Singers and the 100+ voice VocalEssence Chorus.
- Community & Youth Outreach: Flagship educational programs such as WITNESS (celebrating African American culture through choral music) and ¡Cantaré! (partnering with Mexican composers-in-residence) reach thousands of Twin Cities students each year.
- Governance Capacity: The addition of 6 new members brings total board expertise across health tech, philanthropy, executive recruitment, higher education, and small business advocacy.
Official Statements: Leadership Perspectives
Executive leadership at VocalEssence expressed strong confidence in the strategic value and vision the new board cohort brings to the organization.
"I’m delighted to welcome our new board members to the organization," said Philip Brunelle, Artistic Director and Founder of VocalEssence. "Our mission is to unite our community in song, and each one of our new board members creates an opportunity we deeply value—to connect with the new voices and new networks that are always growing in the place we’ve called home for more than half a century. Serving on our board is a generous contribution of time, skill, and spirit, and we know these incredible professionals have insights and perspectives that will enhance VocalEssence beyond measure."
Brunelle’s sentiments were echoed by executive management, emphasizing the critical alignment between professional skill sets and organizational mission.
"These new board members bring a powerful mix of executive leadership, HR, marketing, philanthropy, and arts governance experience to VocalEssence," stated Amy Jaine Wielunski, Executive Director of VocalEssence. "I am thrilled to welcome them on board! Just as inspiring are their personal connections to our mission, from lifelong choral singers to newer enthusiasts, all united by the belief that singing has the power to bring people together. I am excited at the opportunity to work with each of them as we grow our impact across the Twin Cities and beyond."
Strategic Implications & Future Outlook
The board expansion reflects a proactive posture by VocalEssence leadership to ensure long-term sustainability while pursuing strategic market opportunities. As the organization prepares for its upcoming performance seasons and educational programs, the new directors will focus on several high-priority strategic initiatives:
- Philanthropic Innovation: Leveraging digital transformation and donor-centric modeling (led by insights from Karen Voracek) to broaden the donor base and cultivate next-generation benefactors.
- Commercial & Operational Discipline: Applying proven enterprise growth frameworks (informed by Carolyn Sleeth and Harry Miller) to optimize ticket pricing strategies, venue partnerships, and cost structures.
- Equitable Community Engagement: Utilizing established regional and national arts networks (guided by Bunny Robinson and Sooki Jalali) to ensure programming authentically reflects the evolving cultural demographics of the Twin Cities.
- Workforce & Leadership Sustainability: Building internal human resources infrastructure (supported by Sunita Vongharath-Evenson) to support artistic and administrative talent in an evolving nonprofit workforce environment.
By combining artistic excellence with elite executive governance, VocalEssence is positioning itself not only to withstand broader industry headwinds but to establish a benchmark for modern nonprofit arts management in the United States.
