Officers & Executive Director

Stephanie Knobel, President

Stephanie Knobel has been involved with the Fine Arts Center for over 5 years. Both of her children participated in the ARMES program and her daughter, Anna Knobel, is currently a Junior in the Theater program. Stephanie is the Executive Director of the YMCA Judson Community Center. She serves on several local nonprofit boards and is active in community initiatives that support youth services. She is very excited and honored to be part of the newly formed Fine Arts Center Partners Board.

Dr. Thomas Strange, Vice President

Tom Strange has an extensive background in materials science and is the author of fifty-three patents and numerous papers over the last three decades, covering all aspects of capacitor development. He was a member of a small team of entrepreneurs who developed and produced the pioneering flat medical-grade electrolytic capacitor that made thoracic implantable cardioverter defibrillators possible. Strange has presented numerous lectures/concerts on early piano development in the US and around the world and is a builder and restorer of early keyboard instruments. He now serves as the Executive Director of the Sigal Music Museum in Greenville.

Terri Doiron, Treasurer

Terri Doiron has over 20 years of professional experience in bookkeeping and accounting duties. She is the Office and Financial manager for COR3 Design LLC working alongside her husband, Brian Doiron. She is the mother of 4 adult children, of which 2 are Fine Arts Center Alumni. Her son Jacob is a Senior at Berklee College of Music (Percussion) and her daughter Morgan is an entering Freshman at Boston Conservatory (Dance). Her son Colby works in Connecticut and her stepdaughter Grace is a Sophomore at College of Charleston (Psychology). Terri’s hobbies include running, cooking and travel. She also serves on the festival committee for the Italian American Club of Greenville and volunteers with The Greenville Ballet School, helping with their annual production of The Nutcracker.

Steve Hairston, Secretary

Steve Hairston currently serves as the Assistant Director of Employer Engagement at Furman University. Prior to arriving at Furman, Steve worked at Public Education Partners as their Policy and Advocacy Director. He has spent most of his 20-year career in higher education or affiliated with education in some fashion and has worked at a number of the nation’s most prestigious private and public higher education institutions. Steve holds a Master of Business Administration from Clemson University and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Hope College. He and his wife, Christen, raise their three children in downtown Greenville and, in his spare time, he loves honing his culinary skills, playing basketball, listening to vintage soul and hip-hop, and spending time with extended family and friends.

John Warner, Executive Director

John has been Executive Director since 2021. Since returning to Greenville in 2008, John has served as VP Finance and Administration at the SC Governor’s School for the Arts and Humanities and Executive Director of the Ray and Joan Kroc Center. John is co-Founder and former President of Selective Micro Technologies, LLC. John also remains active in several local cultural and economic development organizations Prior to founding Selective Micro, John held several senior executive positions with large industrial companies. He was Chief Operating Officer at World Minerals, Inc., Vice President and General Manager for Grace Packaging (a division of W. R. Grace & Co), in both Europe, based in Lausanne, Switzerland, and Asia Pacific, based in Hong Kong, and senior management positions in Grace Packaging’s US organization, including Chief Financial Officer. John is a former US Air Force pilot and was an Assistant Professor of Mathematics at the US Air Force Academy. He is now retired from the Air Force Reserve. John is a graduate of the United States Air Force Academy and holds graduate degrees from North Carolina State University (Applied Mathematics) and Clemson University (Business).