Tom DeCaigny is an international leader in the areas of cultural policy, arts education, public art and community development. He is currently the Executive Director of the California Alliance for Arts Education – one of the United States’ premiere state-level arts policy, advocacy and research organizations. Most recently, DeCaigny served in San Francisco Mayor London Breed’s administration as the Director of Cultural Affairs at the San Francisco Arts Commission (SFAC) where he oversaw a city department with an annual budget of $42 million. During his eight years at the SFAC, DeCaigny turned around a struggling city agency, set a responsive policy agenda that advanced space affordability and racial equity, and tripled annual investment in San Francisco’s cultural sector.

Prior to his tenure at the SFAC, DeCaigny spent nine years as Executive Director of the Performing Arts Workshop, a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping young people develop critical thinking, creative expression and essential learning skills through the arts. He has held board leadership positions with a variety of national and international organizations including the U.S. Urban Arts Federation and World Cities Culture Forum as well as with the California Alliance for Arts Education and LYRIC, an LGBTQQI youth organization in San Francisco. Currently, DeCaigny serves as a trustee of the San Francisco Community Investment Fund which distributes over $35 million annually in New Market Tax Credits. He resides in the Excelsior District of San Francisco.