Founder and President of Big Tree Arts

Dr. Cheryl Maddalena has worked as a product engineer for Procter and Gamble and as a data analyst for Clorox. She received her bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering and Technical Writing from Carnegie Mellon University in 1994, but soon thereafter changed paths to study psychology at the California Institute of Integral Studies. She was a psychology intern at the Salvation Army Rehabilitation Center in Oakland, the Tenderloin Outpatient Clinic in San Francisco, and the Psychology Services Center in Oakland. During her time as a graduate student, Cheryl began participating in poetry slams and she received her doctorate in Psychology with her dissertation on slam entitled, "The Resolution of Internal Conflict Through Performing Poetry." Cheryl has represented poetry teams from San Jose, Berkeley, and Boise at the National Poetry Slam, and was a Finalist at the 2004 National Poetry Slam.

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Executive Board

Ken Rodgers teaches and writes poetry, short stories and short, creative non-fiction. He has an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of San Francisco. Ken's writing has been published in a number of venues. His book of poems, Trench Dining, was published by Running Wolf Press in 2003


Faith Kline has a BA in Speech Language Pathology with a minor in Linguistics from the University of Minnesota, and is currently working on her Masters in Mental Health Counseling. Faith served for two years on the executive board of St. Michaels Cooperative Preschool as co-treasurer, as well as serving on the fundraising sub-commitee. Faith has been 'slamming' since the summer of 2008.

Carrie King is a native Alaskan with a BA in secondary education/biology. Carrie currently lives in Boise where she successfully manages the lives of her two precocious children, her one loving husband and her devoted dog. Carrie in her spare time serves as Art parent at her daughters school, girl scout leader and just finished an incredible remodel on her lovely North end home.

Events Manager

Isaac Grambo
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Web Designer

Peter Johnson is a web/graphic designer based out of Boise. He currently freelances. He has BA in Graphic Design from Northwest Nazarene University (NNU), and has also taught web design at NNU.
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Website: www.peterjohnsondesign.com