Administrators and Staff

John Hylton
Dean
CoFAC

Phone: (314) 516-4570
email: John_Hylton@umsl.edu

John Hylton was appointed the Founding Dean of the College of Fine Arts and Communication at the University of Missouri-St. Louis in 2002.   Under his leadership the College has grown in enrollment, added degree programs, and collaborated with a variety of internationally prominent St. Louis arts institutions, including the Saint Louis Symphony, Saint Louis Art Museum, and Opera Theatre of Saint Louis. Six endowed professorships link the College to the greater St. Louis community, region, and nation.  The College’s  Touhill Performing Arts Center is a world-class performance facility.

Hylton received the masters and doctoral degrees in music education from the Pennsylvania State University, and the Bachelor of Science degree from Gettysburg College, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. From 1995-2000, he was the Chair of the Department of Music and Director of Fine Arts Outreach. In addition, he has served as Interim Associate Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs (2000-2002).

Hylton is the author of numerous articles, papers, and reviews, which have been published in such journals as the Music Educators Journal, the Journal of Research in Music Education, the Journal of Music Teacher Education, The Choral Journal, the Journal of Music Therapy, and the Bulletin of the Council for Research in Music Education. He is the author of a textbook published by Prentice-Hall entitled Comprehensive Choral Music Education (1995) and he wrote "The Junior High Vocal Music Program," a chapter in Kenneth Miller's Vocal Music Education (1988).

He was the 1993 recipient of the Luther T. Spayde "Missouri Choral Conductor of the Year" Award, presented by the Missouri Choral Directors Association, and the Merit Award from the St. Louis Suburban Music Educators Association for “contributions to the advancement of music education” (1998).  John Hylton has received the Alumni Achievement Award from the Penn State University School of Music (1999), as well as the “Chancellors Award for Excellence in Service” for 2001 from the University of Missouri-St. Louis.  He is listed in Who’s Who in America.

Ms. Sharon Clark
Associate Dean
CoFAC

Phone: (314) 516-5501
email: ssdclar@umsl.edu

Phone: (314) 516-4205
email: cahans@umsl.edu

Susan Cahan is Associate Dean for Academic Affairs in the College of Fine Arts and Communication and the Des Lee Professor in Contemporary Art at the University of Missouri-St. Louis. Prior to joining UM-St. Louis in 2003, she was a faculty member at the Center for Curatorial Studies at Bard College and a visiting professor in the Department of Art at the University of California, Los Angeles. She has also had over twenty years experience as a curator and museum professional. From 1996 to 2001 Cahan served as senior curator for the private collection of Eileen and Peter Norton, one of the world's largest collections of contemporary art, and director of arts programs for the Peter Norton Family Foundation. She worked at the New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York as Deputy Director (1993 to 1996) and Curator of Education (1987 to 1993).  She also served at The Museum of Modern Art in New York in the museum’s educational programs for New York City schools (1982 to 1987).

Cahan’s research focuses on the relationships between contemporary art and social movements and the history of museums in the United States. She has published widely on visual art and culture. In 2007 she received an Arts Writer's Grant from the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts and her publications include Contemporary Art and Multicultural Education (Routledge, 1996); "Carrie Mae Weems: Reflecting Louisiana" in Carrie Mae Weems: The Louisiana Project (Tulane University, 2004); and I Remember Heaven: Jim Hodges and Andy Warhol (Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis, 2007). She is currently working on a book entitled The Politics of Race in American Museums, 1968-1972. Cahan received her M.A. in Art History at Hunter College and her Ph.D. at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York.

Alberta Breckinridge

Alberta Breckinridge is the Manager of Business/Fiscal Operations Specialist for the College of Fine Arts & Communication. She received her MA in Accounting and Master of Business Administration from Fontbonne University and her Bachelor of Science, Business Administration from Southeast Missouri State University.

Prior to her employment with the University of Missouri-St. Louis, Alberta was employed for 22 years by Washington University as the Accounting Manager,
Operations Manager and Acting Director for the Campus Stores, as well as three
years as the Controller for a telecommunications corporation. She is currently
pursuing certification as a Certified Management Accountant.

In May of this year Linda began working at the university as a senior academic advisor. She spent 6 ½ years as an Academic Counselor at Oklahoma City Community College. While there she also taught Psychology and Medical Terminology as an adjunct instructor. Before completing undergraduate and graduate programs at the Ohio State University, Linda worked as a Registered Nurse for almost two decades.

Linda’s academic history includes an Associate of Applied Science Degree in Nursing from Belleville Area College, now Southwestern Illinois College, and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and a Master of Arts in Cognitive Psychology from Ohio State University.

Having been a nontraditional student and an instructor, Linda understands the special needs of adults returning to school and brings a unique viewpoint to the advising setting. She sees advising as a forum for teaching students how to create a plan for completing their degree, while improving academic, decision-making, and time management skills, which will carry over into the workplace.

Katie Matsumoto
Assistant to the Dean
CoFAC

Phone: (314) 516-4570
email:  Katie_Matsumoto@umsl.edu

Katie Matsumoto is Assistant to the Dean in the College of Fine Arts and Communication. She came to the University of Missouri – St. Louis in 1997 to work in the Music department.  She has been in the Dean’s Office since the founding of  the College in 2001.  As Assistant to the Dean, Katie also serves as office manager and coordinates special events for the College. 

Prior to working for the University, Katie was the Office Manager for DNI Properties, a property management company. For almost 14 years, she was employed by the St. Louis Community College from 1981 – 1995, working for the Assistant Director of Admissions and then as Assistant to the Board of Trustee’s in the Chancellor’s Office.

Linda Aubuchon is the Office Assistant in the College of
Fine Arts and Communication.  She came to us from the Federal Reserve Bank, where for 7 years she worked in
ever increasingly responsible positions in the Community Affairs department, Human Resource department, and the Treasury Relations and System Support department.

Prior to working at the Fed, Linda  took time away from work in 1986 to stay home with her adopted son, returning to work in 1991, where she worked in the office at her son’s school.  She then moved to Midwest BankCentre in 1993 as a loan processor and then an administrative assistant in the consumer lending area. In her early years of employment, Linda was employed by Commerce Bank for 17 years.