All Staff

Jon Scholes is president & CEO of the Downtown Seattle Association where he is responsible for the operations and programs of the DSA, an 1,100-member association formed in 1958 to create a healthy, vibrant downtown for all. In this capacity, Jon is also responsible for the management of the Metropolitan Improvement District (MID), which was established by property owners and the City of Seattle in 1999 to provide cleaning, safety, transportation, marketing and public-realm management services across 300 square blocks in downtown.

He was appointed president and CEO of DSA in November of 2014 following six years as DSA’s vice president of advocacy and economic development. He has led the growth and expansion of the organization’s services, advocacy agenda and response to the impacts of the pandemic on downtown Seattle. Today, DSA is one of the three largest downtown organizations in North America as measured by total annual revenue and staff. Jon has spent more than 20 years working in nonprofit advocacy, public affairs, local government, and in senior positions on political campaigns at the regional and state levels.

Jon serves on the boards of Visit Seattle, the International Downtown Association, and Downtown Emergency Services Center and has served on a number of city and county task forces focused on transportation, homelessness and housing. He was recognized in 2016 as a “40 Under 40” honoree by the Puget Sound Business Journal and named one of Seattle’s most influential people by Seattle Magazine in 2021. He is the host of Seattle City Makers, a podcast launched in 2022 featuring conversations with a cross section of leaders shaping the city.

Jon is a graduate of Leadership Tomorrow and attended the University of Texas in Austin before graduating from the University of Washington. He lives in downtown Seattle with his wife and their 14-year-old twins.

Elisabeth (“Bif”) James is Chief Operating Officer at DSA, overseeing finance, human resources, risk management, information technology, and general administration operations. She was led to DSA by her passion for making positive impacts through community-based efforts. Bif loves leveraging the skills, resources and commitment of diverse stakeholders to achieve DSA goals.

Raised in Marshfield, Massachusetts, Bif started working in her family’s restaurant at the age of five, pushing a broom and waxing the ski-ball machine. She graduated from Tufts University with a BS in Psychology and her 35 years in hotel finance and operations have taken her coast to coast.

Bif moved to Seattle in 1996 and has been in love with the Pacific Northwest ever since. Her son, Niall, works in the film industry and she has two dogs, Kabuki and Ivy, as well as a garage full of power tools and unfinished projects. In her spare time, she enjoys hiking, landscaping and gardening, but her favorite place is the backyard in a hammock with a good book.

Jenn Casillas is Vice President of Public Space Operations and Events for DSA. Along with a great team of colleagues, Jenn is responsible for staffing, activating and programming in downtown parks and public spaces. She is excited about DSA’s focus on the public realm and enjoys the creativity and innovation involved in building a vibrant, interesting and healthy urban core.

Prior to DSA, Jenn was Assistant Director of University Services at Seattle Pacific University. Preceding SPU, Jenn worked in various organizations sharpening her skills in business development, marketing, event planning and operations.

Jenn graduated from the University of Washington and earned a Master’s of Science in Communications from Ithaca College in New York. During breaks between raising two energetic children and working full-time, Jenn enjoys running along Alki Beach, skiing, relaxing with family and friends at her family’s lake house and volunteering with Westside Baby and NW Hope & Healing.

Sally Wright is Vice President of Communications and Marketing for DSA. She oversees a fun and talented team of people who manage a broad scope of work, including member relations, media relations, social media, issues management, branding and design, events and sponsorships.

Sally joined DSA after many years leading communications and marketing functions in health care organizations, including Swedish and Group Health Cooperative. Early in her career she was the communications manager for the Greater Seattle Chamber of Commerce.

A Seattle native, Sally loves being part of the DSA team because it allows her a front-row seat to the many changes going on downtown and across the city.

When she’s not at work, Sally can usually be found at the gym, volunteering, or hanging out with her husband, kids, dog and large extended family. She enjoys analyzing politics and learning the finer points of professional baseball. Go Ms!

Kylie Rolf is Vice President of Advocacy & Economic Development. Prior to joining DSA, Kylie most recently served in Seattle mayor Jenny Durkan’s office as Director of Legislative Affairs and Major Initiatives.

Kylie brings rich experience on numerous urban issues critical to DSA members and ratepayers. In her time at the mayor’s office, she helped lead and oversee a variety of priority projects for the administration on policies ranging from housing and homelessness to worker protections to funding initiatives for education and public facilities.

In her free time Kylie enjoys reading novels with a focus on mystery, crime, or interesting character studies, is an avid crossword puzzler, enthusiastic exerciser and an even more enthusiastic eater. She lives downtown with her husband and small dog.

Kirk Hovenkotter is Executive Director of Commute Seattle, where he leads efforts to improve mobility to and through downtown Seattle. Kirk previously led Move Redmond where he spearheaded initiatives to make it easier for the city’s 100,000 workers, residents and students to walk, bike and bus. Prior to that, Kirk developed TransitCenter, another mobility-focused organization, into a nationally recognized policy leader. He has advised mayors, county executives and transit agencies on effective approaches to bus networks and fare policy. Kirk has also been a voice for transit in national media outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Wired and Governing Magazine. He grew up just outside of Redmond, is fluent in Danish and enjoys film and dance.