Manuel R. Cawaling is a Board Member for Cultural Access Washington and has served as Executive Director of Youth Theatre Northwest since May 2008.  A Seattle native, Manuel has been working professionally as an artist and arts administrator for more than 20 years. He also served as a founding board member for Seattle's League of Fringe Theatres, the predecessor of today's Theatre Puget Sound and the organization credited with establishing Seattle's Fringe Theatre Festival, the first such festival in the United States. Between 1992 and 1998, Manuel worked at the Northwest Asian American Theatre, and through his leadership, the theatre initiated an award-winning Youth Outreach and Education Program; conducted theatre residencies in local high schools and communities; and developed a capital campaign, which successfully raised funds for renovations and equipment. In 1999, Manuel became Exhibit Developer/Manager at the Wing Luke Asian Museum, where in addition to his exhibit work, he headed organizational outreach initiatives and YouthCAN, an empowerment program designed to assist Asian-Pacific-American youth in the development of leadership and creative skills. Manuel is active in outreach to youth, including immigrant and refugee communities. From 2003 to 2008, Manuel served on staff at the Langston Hughes Performing Arts Center, initially in artistic programming and then Managing Director, overseeing all administrative and programmatic activities for the performing arts facility. He has served two terms on the Seattle Center Advisory Commission, was a member of the Seattle Office of Arts and Culture's Public Art Advisory Committee and served as President for the Washington State Arts Alliance Foundation. As President, he led the annual planning for the Cultural Congress, our state-wide arts conference.