Katie Conry
Executive Director
Katie Conry has served as the Tenderloin Museum’s Executive Director since 2016. When TLM opened its doors in July 2015, Conry served as its Program Director with a dynamic vision for neighborhood-centric, diverse programs that bring people together from all walks of life. As Executive Director, Katie has cemented TLM’s identity as a destination for community-based, historically-inspired arts programs. In 2018, she led TLM’s premiere of two major, critically-acclaimed performance projects: The Compton’s Cafeteria Riot play and the Tender aerial dance with Flyaway Productions. Katie has also held positions at the California Academy of Sciences, the Exploratorium, and the Contemporary Jewish Museum. In 2012, she helped fundraise to save Mission neighborhood gem Adobe Books, created its events department, supported the gallery's transition to nonprofit status, and served on the Board of Directors for three years. She holds a B.A. in Anthropology and American Studies from the University of California at Berkeley.
Alex Spoto
Program Director
Alex Spoto serves as the Tenderloin Museum’s Program Director, ideating, planning, and executing public programming. He rejoined Tenderloin Museum’s staff after serving as an Events & Operations Manager at San Francisco’s McEvoy Foundation for the Arts. Prior to that, he worked part time as a Communications Coordinator for TLM from 2017-2018 and then as a volunteer. He has a background in writing and editing for primarily music focused outlets such as the online blog Aquarium Drunkard and magazines such as Rolling Stone, Spin. Alex holds a BA in American Civilization from Brown University. He has lived in San Francisco since 2016.
Sofia Karliner
Development Manager
Sofia Karliner serves as the Tenderloin Museum’s Development Manager: conveying the story of the Museum and neighborhood to wider audiences in order to foster support, collaboration and dynamic partnerships. Born and raised in San Francisco, she holds a BA in English and Anthropology from Barnard College and an MA in Applied Critical Archaeology and Heritage from the University of Bologna. Aside from working at the Tenderloin Museum, Sofia is an early-career researcher, focusing on community-based and decentralized museums, decolonization practice and non-Western heritage valorization. She has further work experience as a curator, grant writer, and educator, and was recently published in the peer-reviewed journal Museum International.
Jeffrey Bennett Allen
Operations Manager
Jeffrey Bennett Allen is an interdisciplinary artist serving as the Tenderloin Museum’s Operations Manager: ensuring quality, while further bridging and contextualizing broader categories of ‘optimization as expression’. He previously worked as the Exhibitions & Project Coordinator at Fleisher Art Memorial and Process Engineer at Xylem Design. Allen received his MFA in Sculpture from Rhode Island School of Design. He’s exhibited work at Microscope Gallery, Bortolami Gallery, LOOP: Barcelona, MAMA: Rotterdam, BHA Nation: Fort Berthold Indian Reservation, and the RISD Museum.
Jared Stearns
Marketing & Communications Specialist
Jared Stearns is the Tenderloin Museum's marketing guru, specializing in social media and email marketing. He previously worked in B2B marketing for more than fifteen years. In 2024, his book Pure: The Sexual Revolutions of Marilyn Chambers was published by Headpress. It's the first authorized biography of the iconic adult film star who played an integral part in Tenderloin history as the star of the classic 1972 X-rated film Behind the Green Door. He's also written for The Boston Globe, the San Francisco Chronicle, The San Franciscan, The Dark Side, and Cineaste. A Tenderloin resident for nearly two decades, he holds a BS in Journalism from Emerson College in Boston.