Chair, Ohio Arts Council

NASAA has named Geraldine B. “Ginger” Warner, chair of the Ohio Arts Council, the recipient of its 2024 Distinguished Public Service Award. The award honors volunteer leaders of the state arts agency field whose outstanding service, creative thinking, and leadership significantly impact public support for the arts in their state and across the country.

Ginger Warner is a retired attorney who practiced private and corporate law in New York, Maryland, California and the District of Columbia. Since moving to Ohio in 1983, Warner has devoted much of her life to her passion for the arts and, in doing so, empowered others to pursue their creative potential and access arts and cultural experiences in diverse settings. She has served as chair of the Ohio Arts Council (OAC) since 2016, previously having served as vice-chair from 2011-2016. She began her OAC board service in 1997 and has since been appointed by five consecutive Ohio governors spanning the political spectrum.

Warner’s board and volunteer service reaches across Ohio, including service to the National First Ladies Library and Museum in Canton and the Cleveland Orchestra. In the Greater Cincinnati area, she has served with the Taft Museum of Art, Ensemble Theatre, May Festival, Madisonville Education and Assistance League, Children’s Hospital Medical Center, University of Cincinnati, Hamilton County Park District, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Cincinnati Opera, and Greenacres Foundation. She is a founder of The Harmony Project at the Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM) and Books for Lunch at Seven Hills School. Warner also established the Warner Fellowship in Law and Women’s Studies at the University of Cincinnati and the May Festival Fellowship in Choral Conducting at CCM. She is a member of the University of Cincinnati’s Circle of Honor Benefactors.

“Ginger Warner’s unwavering dedication to the arts has left an indelible mark on Ohio, the nation and our field,” said NASAA President and CEO Pam Breaux. “As a tireless advocate and thoughtful leader, Ginger brings balance and strategic focus wherever she serves, at every level. Forward-thinking and innovative, her passion for the arts shines through in everything she does and inspires others to bring their best to the cause. I can think of no one more deserving than Ginger to receive this award based on her decades of service to the arts and the people and communities of Ohio.”