Biographical Info
Robert Birman (Executive Director) Named 2022 Business Leader of the Year in Jefferson County, Rob joined Centrum in 2013, having served as a senior executive in the orchestra world for more than 20 years in San Francisco, Louisville, Santa Barbara, Boston and elsewhere. He is a former arts administration fellow with the National Endowment for the Arts; an ISPA fellow at the New World Symphony in Miami Beach; and worked two summers at the Colorado Music Festival in Boulder. Mr. Birman has been a member of numerous national boards and is Past President of the Association of California Symphony Orchestras. He has served on grants panels for the National Endowment for the Arts, California Arts Council, Washington State Arts Commission, Kentucky Arts Council, and The Heinz Endowments and is a former presenter and participant in programs of the League of American Orchestras’ Orchestra Leadership Academy. Rob is a percussionist and has a Bachelor of Music Performance degree from Temple University and graduate training in arts administration from Drexel University in Philadelphia.
Programs added since 2013 include Centrum’s Ukulele workshop, Voices from the Field Arts Academy, Native Voices Arts Academy (no longer in existence), Strong Voices Arts Academy (for students in Foster Care, also discontinued due to State funding), Red Hot Strings, Long Form Novel Writing, Long Form Memoir, Poetry on the Salish Sea, Communiversity lecture series (discontinued during COVID), Emerging Artist Residency, In the Making Residency, Curator and Arts Worker Residencies.
Under Birman’s tenure the organization has grown from an annual budget of $2.6 million in 2013 to $5.1 million in 2026. The value of its endowment fund has increased more than 900% over that same period, to just over $1.1 million.
In January 2026, Birman completed negotiations for a landmark long-term lease with the Washington State Parks Commission. Centrum’s lease is for 35 years with an option to renew, effectively yielding a 70-year commitment to sustain Centrum’s programs at Fort Worden State Park. The centerpiece of the agreement enables Centrum to qualify for up to 80% of its capital investments in improving its fourteen State-owned buildings to be treated as pre-paid rent.