Justin Nigro is the operations and public affairs director of the Ohio Arts Council. His job entails managing board, media, external, intragovernmental, and legislative relations; overseeing events and communications; and developing the agency’s state operating budget request, among other duties. Justin started his career in public service in 2006 in the Ohio Senate, first serving as a Legislative Service Commission fellow and later as a senior legislative aide and the chamber’s minority finance director. In this role, he performed fiscal and policy analysis of state revenues, expenditures, agency budgets and programs, and related economic matters. In 2012, he moved to Chicago to become the executive director of a coalition organized to advocate for the preservation of retirement security, coordinating and guiding the group’s efforts as Illinois policymakers weighed changes to the state’s pension systems. Justin returned to Columbus in late 2014 and joined the staff of the Ohio Arts Council.

He serves on the Thomas J. Moyer Ohio Judicial Center Commission, chairing its Fine Arts Committee, which governs the acquisition, presentation, and placement of artwork within the Ohio Supreme Court. He also serves on the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce’s Industry-Recognized Credential Review Committee for the arts and communications career field. Through the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies (NASAA), he has both presented on branding at the 2018 NASAA Assembly and served as a virtual and in-person facilitator for the public information officers peer group from 2020-2022. He has been a guest lecturer on the importance of public arts funding, engagement, and advocacy for courses at several of Ohio’s public and private universities and in other forums. Originally from Ashtabula, Justin graduated summa cum laude with honors and distinction from Miami University, earning bachelor’s degrees in international studies and political science. He has had a lifelong interest in the arts, expressed through writing, acting, and attending events to support artists and communities.