Sam Blumenthal, Ph.D. has served on the IBMA Foundation Board since 2017. He is a retired Clinical Psychologist who practiced for over thirty years, and a former family business owner of chemical manufacturing companies in the automotive and industrial markets. He is the author of the Once Upon A Time short story series, which have received multiple awards for literary excellence. Always a music and story lover, Sam was first exposed to Bluegrass at Merlefest, and since 2015, consumes Bluegrass only slightly less than food. He is a 2019 graduate of Leadership Bluegrass, the best class ever; and the perfect vehicle for plunging Sam deeper into the Bluegrass world. He has a heart to bring Bluegrass music to a wider audience, and is a private promoter, always looking for willing partners to help make this possible. He served on the Earl Scruggs Music Festival Board from inception in 2019 through 2025. Serving on the IBMA Foundation Board has been one of the greatest honors of Sam’s life, working closely with individuals from all walks of life, who share a love of Bluegrass music and its uniquely American roots, which touches a place very deep in all our souls.

Katy Daley joined the IBMA Foundation Board in 2025 bringing 40+ years of bluegrass and country broadcasting experience with WAMUFM, WMZQ-AM&FM, WAMU’s Bluegrass Country streaming service and the podcast, Bluegrass Stories: Stories About the Business of Bluegrass Music”. Katy was voted IBMA Broadcaster of the Year In 2009 and 2011. Following her retirement from broadcasting, she ventured into print media. Between 2016 and 2018 she interviewed dozens of bluegrass artists and industry leaders published by Bluegrass Today. She won the IBMA’s Liner Notes awards in 2019 and 2020 for “Epilogue: A Tribute to John Duffey” (with co-writers Akira Otsuke and Dudley Connell and Jeff Place) for Smithsonian Folkways and the Rebel Records re-issue of the “Seldom Scene Live at the Cellar Door” She received the IBMA Distinguished Achievement in 2019 and was inducted into the Bluegrass Hall of Fame in 2024. Katy believes strongly in the importance of bluegrass education. She and her husband Bill Brown established the Katy Daley Broadcasting Media/Sound Engineering Scholarship at the IBMA Foundation. She hopes to help expand the number and types of scholarships and grants available through the IBMA Foundation.

Sierra Hull is widely regarded to be a master of her instrument; A six-time GRAMMY nominated artist and songwriter, recognized for her most recent projects, A Tip Toe High Wire (2025), 25 Trips (2020) and Weighted Mind (2016), she is also the 7x recipient of IBMA’s Mandolin Player of the Year, the first woman to ever receive this distinction. A pioneer for acoustic music throughout her already impressive multi-decade career, she has graced the country’s most iconic stages, including Carnegie Hall, the Grand Ole Opry, and the White House. Her virtuosic abilities have garnered respect from genre-defining trailblazers, friends, and collaborators such as Alison Krauss, Sturgill Simpson, Eric Clapton, Dolly Parton, Béla Fleck, Steve Martin, Brandi Carlile, Dave Matthews, Cory Wong, Billy Strings and more. Originally hailing from Byrdstown, Tennessee, her unique sound is rooted in bluegrass, and she is widely considered one of acoustic music’s most inventive artists.

Matt Royles joined the IBMA Foundation board in 2025. He brings to the organization deep nonprofit and finance experience, coupled with his background as a bluegrass music performer and advocate. As an external relations professional in the nonprofit and impact investing fields, he has facilitated hundreds of millions of dollars in investments, leveraging capital to drive meaningful change in communities. His lifelong love of bluegrass music began with a Béla Fleck show during his teenage years in Connecticut. In his 30s, he co-founded an award-winning bluegrass band (Man About a Horse), toured internationally, and released a Billboard-charting album. Since 2015, he has led Philly Bluegrass, a nonprofit he founded with a mission of promoting bluegrass music in Philadelphia that grown to a community of more than 1,300 bluegrass fans and musicians. Matt has been a voting member of the Recording Academy and is a 2019 graduate of Leadership Bluegrass.

Mark Schuster is a business executive, investor, and philanthropist who serves as Treasurer and an executive committee member for the IBMA Foundation. A visionary entrepreneur, he founded The Schuster Group at age 22, leading the notable Puget Sound real estate development and investment firm for 28 years before retiring from daily operations to serve as Chairman. He is also a two-time national award-winning author of the business memoir Lofty Pursuits – Repairing the World One Building At a Time (Brown Books), which explores the core pillars of family, business, and community. As a dedicated musician and leader, Mark proudly channels his love for bluegrass into supporting the IBMA Foundation’s educational and philanthropic initiatives, alongside mentoring, charity work, and pursuing his goal of visiting all 63 U.S. National Parks.

Trisha Tubbs joined the IBMA Foundation Board in 2023, bringing a diverse background in business, nonprofit, and volunteer leadership. Holding a BSBA in Marketing and Business Administration and an MBA in Finance and Accounting, she served in senior management positions with Fortune 100 companies, served on nonprofit boards, and spent nearly 20 years as a management consultant helping organizations such as Toyota, AARP, the Museum of Modern Art, and several municipal governments. As the Foundation’s President and Board Chair, Trisha is passionate about ensuring that bluegrass music thrives while remaining vibrant and accessible. Her bluegrass leadership experience includes service on the Leadership Bluegrass Planning Committee, bluegrass coordinator for the Northwest Folklife Festival, concert series producer, band manager and agent, and IBMA Momentum Awards producer. She also volunteers as a docent co-captain at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum and as the Firewise USA® Coordinator for her local Community Emergency Response Training (CERT) organization.

John Young joined the Foundation board in 2024, bringing decades of nonprofit executive leadership to the organization. A graduate with a Master of Social Work from The University of Alabama, John spent his career directing large-scale human services, notably serving for 20 years as the President/CEO of Catholic Charities of Yakima, an agency providing a vast array of behavioral health and human services across central WA. He also held posts in Mobile and Memphis. He brought his expertise to Catholic Charities USA, the largest private network of social service agencies in the US, holding positions of Chair, Vice-Chair and Treasurer. John’s alignment with the Foundation’s mission stems from this lifelong dedication to community advocacy and building structures that support and elevate individuals. John has a deep, enduring connection to bluegrass music. He has channeled his creative energy into bluegrass for decades as a mandolin player and band leader. John and his wife, Celia, live on the eastern shore of Mobile Bay in Fairhope, Alabama.

Cassie Wright was appointed Executive Director of the IBMA Foundation in April 2026, bringing over 15 years of leadership experience across the nonprofit, public health administration, and public housing sectors. Throughout her career, she has specialized in modernizing organizational operations, building donor stewardship programs, and spearheading strategic growth initiatives. At the Foundation, Cassie guides long-term strategic development, operational infrastructure, and impactful grantmaking and scholarships to ensure a vibrant, sustainable future for bluegrass music worldwide.

Deeply committed to community-focused resource development, she also maintains her professional engagement in regional public health and suicide prevention initiatives. In addition to her nonprofit leadership career, Cassie is an active professional musician and community organizer based in the Chicago metropolitan area. She performs on the banjo and dobro, tours with the women-led ensemble Fox Crossing Stringband, and manages regional music preservation platforms. She is a graduate of Leadership Bluegrass 2024.