about

Susannah Goodman is a potter, teacher, organizer and advocate.

A lifelong Detroiter, Susannah has worked in arts education and administration with Living Arts, Pewabic Pottery, The Heidelberg Project, Oakland Community College, and the Detroit Institute of Arts. For nearly a decade, Susannah was the studio manager of Ladybug Studios, a ceramics cooperative and community studio in Southwest Detroit.

As a gubernatorial appointee, Susannah served from 2014-2020 on the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs (now MACC), where she advocated for equitable arts funding statewide. In this role she represented Michigan with the National Association of State Arts Agencies and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Working at the intersection of arts and social change, Susannah is a founding member of Detroit Jews for Justice. From 2019-2022, she served as DJJ’s Deputy Director, laying the groundwork for the launch of an independent nonprofit. She now serves on the Board of Trustees.

Susannah started throwing pots on the wheel in high school, while under the tutelage of Tom Szmrecsanyi. She earned a BFA in Ceramics from Guilford College under the mentorship of Charlie Tefft. Susannah continued her education with a two-year apprenticeship with Kevin Crowe at Tye River Pottery.