Karla Rothan

Karla Rothan was born in June of 1964 and grew up in Cincinnati, Ohio. She studied theater at The Ohio State University and then began working in children's theater with MadCap productions, in Cincinnati, and later with the Columbus Children's Theatre. In June 2006, Rothan became the Stonewall Executive Director for a six-month interim before becoming the full-time director in March of 2007. Rothan began as a six-month interim director and took the helm as the Executive Director in March 2007. She inherited a Stonewall that was in debt, overextended, and little business infrastructure. Rothan transformed the business model for the organization, increasing its budget and has grown Stonewall Columbus Pride Festival. She retired from Stonewall in 2018, but continues to work on issues like the opioid epidemic.
In her interview, Rothan talks about her family life, school, and growing up in Cincinnati. She discusses her coming out experience, her work in the theater, and the social scene in Columbus in the 1970s. Rothan describes her political activism, how the AIDS crisis united the LGBTQ+ community, and her work with Stonewall. She concludes her interview by reviewing how LGBTQ+ issues have evolved, the growth of the Pride parade, and what accomplishment she is most proud.
Ohio Memory: ohiomemory.org...