BOARD Members
Leslie Nail: President
Leslie Nail retired as an editor and communications specialist with the American Institutes for Research, where she helped deliver research results in education-related topics. Her career also included fifteen years with a nonprofit professional association of Texas college and university presidents and chancellors. Prior to that, she enjoyed teaching writing and literature to community college students and in a program abroad.
Marianne DeLeón: Vice President
Marianne DeLeón is the CEO of the Texas Book Festival. She holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Texas at Austin and a master’s from Southern Methodist University, where she documented her family’s immigration story from Cuba. Early in her career, she served in the Peace Corps in Moldova and AmeriCorps VISTA in Dallas, sparking a lifelong commitment to mission-driven fundraising. With more than two decades of nonprofit leadership experience, she most recently helped complete the $15M capital campaign for Pease Park Conservancy. She also serves on the board of No Comply Foundation. Finally, Marianne has a teenage son who is her brightest star.
Joanna Castillo
Joanna Castillo is well known in the Austin music scene as an active, engaged fan. On most nights she attends at least one show in Austin or the surrounding area. She is often found volunteering her time and knowledge of the community to the organizations and venues— and merch tables—that keep the music flowing. Joanna arrived in Austin in the 1980s to attend the University of Texas. She then joined the University’s IT team and still works there part time.
Lisa Olstein
Lisa Olstein is the author of six poetry collections and two books of nonfiction. She is also the lyricist for the rock band Cold Satellite fronted by Jeffrey Foucault and in 2025, Lost Alphabet for voice, five musicians, and electronics, an adaptation of her poems by composer Januibe Tejera, premiered with Ensemble Phace. A member of the poetry faculty at the University of Texas at Austin, her honors include a Guggenheim Fellowship, Pushcart Prize, Lannan Residency Fellowship, Hayden Carruth Award, and Writers League of Texas Discovery Award.
STAFF
Carrie Rodriguez: Executive Director and Curator
Carrie Rodriguez, a composer, violinist, and singer from Austin, Texas, finds beauty in the cross-pollination of diverse musical traditions. As a singer-songwriter, she has released five solo studio albums, including Lola, which was hailed as “the perfect bicultural album” and was included in NPR’s Best Albums of 2016, as well as Rolling Stone’s Best Country Albums of the Year. Carrie has performed on stages across North America and Europe and has appeared on programs such as PBS's Austin City Limits, The Tonight Show, and NPR’s Tiny Desk Concerts. In 2017, she founded Laboratorio, a highly acclaimed concert series at Austin's State Theatre that celebrates Latine culture through music, visual art, and storytelling. Her most recent work as a composer/lyricist was for the original musical ¡Americano!, which had a six-week run off broadway at New York City’s New World Stages in 2022 and earned her a nomination for a 2022 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Music. This year, Rodriguez is enjoying her time as the Songwriter in Residence at the University of Texas at Austin. Carrie lives in Austin with her husband and frequent artistic collaborator, Luke Jacobs, and their 10-year-old son, Cruz.
Leti Bueno: Development Manager
Leti Bueno is Development Manager at Laboratorio Arts and a fundraising and development consultant based in Austin, Texas. She works alongside arts and culture organizations to build meaningful resources and partnerships that sustain community-rooted work. Much of her career has been spent supporting artists, cultural workers, and women leaders shaping creative spaces and initiatives. Leti believes that storytelling and cultural knowledge are powerful ways for communities to stay connected to one another, which is why she is proud to support the work of Laboratorio Arts.
Luke Jacobs: Creative Director
Luke Jacobs, founder of Perfecto Creative, is a modern day renaissance man ready to create. He is a videographer, photographer, graphic designer, recording engineer, musician, partner and father with the unique ability to create and manage projects from initial concept to design to production to promotion. A native of Minnesota, he has lived in Austin, Texas since 2010.