The Crandell Theatre’s Board of Directors formally welcomed Dr. Carlee Rader Drummer, Ph.D., Joanne Dunne Murphy, and Nick Van Alstine to its ranks. “Each of our new members bring unique knowledge and expertise to our efforts,” said Lydia Kukoff, President of the Board of Directors. “With all of the projects upcoming for the Crandell, we will certainly benefit from their energy and perspectives.”
Dr. Carlee Drummer assumed her post as Columbia-Greene Community College President on July 1, 2019, following a five-year tenure as President of Quinebaug Valley Community College in Danielson and Willimantic, Connecticut. Before relocating to Connecticut, Dr. Drummer lived in Chicago where she served as the Executive Director of College Advancement and Executive Director of the Educational Foundation at Oakton Community College for 13 years. Prior to that, she was a Vice President at Lipman Hearne, a consulting firm primarily serving colleges and universities here and abroad. She was also Associate Vice President of Communications and Associate Professor of English at Carthage College in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Dr. Drummer worked in New York City as the Manager of Communications for The New York Public Library system and Director of Publications and Public Relations at Baruch College/The City University of New York. She has enjoyed a number of faculty appointments in English, Multicultural Studies, Women’s Studies, and Integrated Marketing Communications. She holds a B.A. (magna cum laude) from Wittenberg University in Springfield, Ohio, and an M.A. and Ph.D. from the State University of New York at Stony Brook.
Joanne Dunne Murphy of Old Chatham is a full-time resident of Columbia County. She moved here in 2015 after living in London and Vienna for sixteen years. An enthusiastic movie-goer and active participant in the local community, she currently serves on the boards of the Shaker Museum Mount Lebanon where she chairs the Collections Committee, and Columbia County Habitat for Humanity. She participated in Habitat’s WomenBuild project in New Lebanon as part of its steering committee and site volunteer. Joanne was drawn to the Crandell’s “community living room” principle and values the importance of the theater’s continued operating presence on Main Street. She is Chair of the Crandell’s new Community Outreach committee, which is developing special programs such as the free preview screening on March 1, 2020 of the documentary “Uprooting Addiction: Healing from the Ground Up” in collaboration with Columbia Pathways to Recovery.
Nick Van Alstine has been a resident of Spencertown for the past 23 years and says, “moving to Columbia County was the best decision I’ve ever made.” He calls it his “happy home.” He has served on the board of the Spencertown Academy Arts Center since 2006 and was Chair of the Board from 2008 to 2019. Nick loves the community and enjoys volunteering and supporting its non-profits. He has been President and CEO of W.N. Van Alstine & Sons and its Macaran Printed Products division since 1993. A longtime supporter of the Crandell, Nick brings his leadership and organizational skills, his commitment to the community and his business experience to develop, plan, and implement new aspects of the organization. He is Chair of the Crandell’s Fundraising and Development Committee.
The Crandell Theatre is Columbia County’s oldest and largest movie theater with 534 seats. It was built in 1926 by Walter S. Crandell, as a vaudeville house. Today the theater is owned and operated by the Crandell Theatre (formerly the Chatham Film Club), a local, not-for-profit organization dedicated to bringing film to Columbia County. The theater features mainstream and independent films daily, seven days a week, and hosts FilmColumbia a 10-day film festival each year in October. Programs of the Crandell Theatre are made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature.
