Nate Anderson - Founder / Executive Director
Nate Anderson is the authentically over-flowing Founder and Executive Director of Ear Candy Charity. He is not a musician, a teacher, or a parent, yet his passion to share music coupled with his skills as an entrepreneur have created an organization impacting thousands. Nate comes from a family of entrepreneurs and studied the subject extensively at Miami University where he graduated Cum Laude with a focus on Organizational Leadership and Entrepreneurship. In a short amount a time Nate has created a sustainable, community driven organization to address the need for music education in a Arizona which is nearly last in per person educational funding. In 2010 Ear Candy impacted over 10,000 youth in the Phoenix area.
In 2009, Nate was deemed the
Best Sales Person of a Good Cause by the Phoenix New Times, and won a
Pyro Award saluting inspiring agents of positive change in the community.
In 2010, he was recognized in the
Business Journal’s 40 under 40, was a
Hon Kachina Honoree and was an official nominee for the Individual
Governor’s Art Award.
Nate Anderson is a dreamer, a visionary and the very definition of a progressive Social Entrepreneur.
Nate@EarCandyCharity.ORG
Ian Feiler - Strategic Development Director
Ian is passionate about education and the arts, and the ability of both to broaden perspectives, inspire and empower young minds. Though he is not a musician, Ian is an amateur artist and photographer who has been deeply influenced by the power of music throughout his life. Ian is dedicated to strengthening communities through arts education in the Phoenix area and is stoked to be on board with the Ear Candy team.
Ian graduated with his Master’s degree in Social Work in 2009 from Arizona State University where he concentrated on Nonprofit Organizational Planning, Administration and Community Practice. During his graduate studies, Ian interned with the Elim House Domestic Violence Shelter and the Catholic Charities Office of Refugee Resettlement where he developed and implemented programs for the communities and their children.
Prior to his graduate studies, Ian received a B.A. in English Literature and Studio Art from the State University of New York at Geneseo. He is a member of the Phi Alpha Honor Society and a 2009 recipient of a U.S. Department of State Critical Language Scholarship to study Korean in Suwon, South Korea.
Ian@EarCandyCharity.Org
Hanna Leister - Program and Volunteer Coordinator
Hanna Leister was born and raised in the greater Phoenix area. Growing up, she was very active in the arts starting at an early age, and they have played a huge role in shaping who she has become today.
Hanna graduated Summa Cum Laude from Arizona State University in 2010 with a BA in Theatre and a minor in Public Administration and Management. She has dabbled in all realms of theatre, serving on the governing board of the Prism Theatre, performing in many productions around the Valley, and serving as an Ensemble member at Space 55 Theatre. In her last year at ASU, she interned at the Arizona Commission on the Arts assisting with many special grant programs for non-profit arts organizations. Through this experience, Hanna gained a much broader perspective of how dire the need for arts education in Arizona has become.
Hanna spent the last year living and working odd jobs in Los Angeles. After a year, she realized how much she wanted to return to Phoenix and join the fight to keep arts education alive in the city that raised her. Hanna is incredibly excited to be joining the Ear Candy team!
Hanna@EarCandyCharity.Org