Month: March 2017

ARAD’s Professional Development Workshop

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The Professional Development Workshop is an opportunity for ARAD students to hone the skills they need for interviewing, building a network, and navigating their transition from graduate student to arts administrators. The event is a great chance for students to ask specific questions that are relevant to their own concerns, to professionals working in the field today, who are able to give insightful and thoughtful advice. We are so pleased with this year’s Professional Development Event!
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Nadia Kyne’ 18 of this year’s Professional Development Workshop shares her experience…

As someone who entered the ARAD program with a performance background, I found that the professional development workshop provided a valuable opportunity to practice interviewing skills and to get guidance from experienced arts admin professionals who are working in the field in New York. The guest panelists provided fantastic feedback, and they shared a lot of useful information on topics ranging from interviewing preparation to negotiating salary. I was particularly excited to meet with Stanford Makishi, New York City Center’s VP of Programming, who, like me, began his career as a performing artist before transitioning to a management role.

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A special thanks to the ARAD Internship Coordinator, Eva Molcard, who was instrumental in putting this event together. Here is what she had to say…

The Professional Development Workshop was an excellent opportunity for ARAD students to hone the skills they need for interviewing, building a network, and navigating their transition from graduate student to arts administrators. The event was a great chance for students to ask specific questions that are relevant to their own concerns, to professionals working in the field today, who are able to give insightful and thoughtful advice. In coordinating the 2017 workshop, I was delighted to see second year students return this year after participating in the 2016 Mock Interview workshop. By broadening the scope of the discussion this year, we were able to allow for questions regarding every step of the application process. This year’s students were characteristically prepared, engaged, and impressive!

Spring 2017: ARAD Microgrant Recipents

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The Arts Administration Program (ARAD) at Teachers College, Columbia University is pleased to announce recipients of the Spring 2017 Microgrant for Student Professionalization.

Through the Microgrant Program and with generous support from the Arts and Humanities Department at Teachers College, ARAD proudly supports student professionalization activities on campus and beyond. This award champions special projects proposed by Teachers College student groups (with ARAD student membership), as well as conference attendance for individual students in the ARAD program. Applications were invited through an open call process, and selected by ARAD faculty.

Congratulations Zamara Choudhary and Thanh Nguyen!

Zamara HeadshotZamara Choudhary graduated summa cum laude from CUNY Macaulay Honors College at Hunter College in 2016, where she majored in History with minors in English and Arabic Studies. A native Brooklynite, Zamara enjoys exploring the diaspora of cultural organizations in New York City and dreamed of working in a museum as a child. Zamara has interned at Studio in a School, the Museum of Arts and Design, the Museum of the City of New York, and the Brooklyn Museum. She hopes to use her unique background and passion for social justice to facilitate cross-cultural understanding and exchange through the arts.

The ARAD Microgrant will support Zamara’s attendance at the National Muslim Women’s Leadership Summit at the Harvard Kennedy School. The Summit brings together a select group of 50 diverse, young Muslim women from across the U.S. to empower them to tackle the most pressing issues facing minority communities.

Thanh Nguyen HeadshotThanh Nguyen graduated from the Ohio State University (2012) with a BA in Theatre, a BS in Anthropological Sciences and minored in Spanish and evolution/ecology. Recently, he completed a year-long education fellowship at Shakespeare Theatre Company and tutors independently. Previously, Thanh worked with Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Union of Vietnamese Student Associations of the Midwest, Central Community House, American Red Cross, Leadership Education for Asian Pacifics Inc. and Association for the Advancement of Filipino American Arts and Culture. Artistically, he performed with InterACT, Worthington Community Theatre, Raconteur Theatre and Lab Series. Thanh will focus on diversity/inclusion practices within arts education programs.

Funding from the ARAD Microgrant will support Thanh’s participation in the Theatre Communications Group National Conference, in Portland, Oregon. Theatre Communications Group is a national organization that provides news, resources and ideas for Broadway, regional and community theatre development. At the conference, he will participate in the workshops related to diversity, equity and inclusion.

Founded in 2002 by graduate students in the Arts Administration program at Teachers College, Columbia University, Student Advocates for the Arts (SAA) engages students in hands-on lobbying, workshops on advocacy and cultural policy, and discussions on the American system for funding the arts. Their mission is to empower and represent student voices to influence legislation and policy affecting the arts and public artLOGOs funding.

The ARAD Microgrant will  also support a delegation of six students to attend National Arts Advocacy day in Washington D.C. This trip provides students the opportunity to meet with leading arts policy-makers, attend workshops and other events hosted by Americans for the Arts, and advocate for arts issues with district representatives and state senators.

Student Spotlight: Zamara Choudhary

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Zamara Choudhary graduated summa cum laude zamara-picture
from CUNY Macaulay Honors College at  Hunter College in 2016, where she majored in History with minors in English and Arabic Studies. A native Brooklynite, Zamara enjoys exploring the diaspora of cultural organizations in New York City, and dreamed of working in a museum as a child. Zamara has interned at Studio in a School, the Museum of Arts and Design, the Museum of the Cityof New York, and the Brooklyn Museum. She hopes to use her unique background and passion for social justice to facilitate cross-cultural understanding and exchange through the arts.

What attracted you to the Arts Administration Program at Teachers College, Columbia University?
I approached three forks in the road at the end of my undergraduate career: education; historical academia; and arts administration. I ultimately selected the Arts Administration program at Teachers College, Columbia University because I felt it combined all of my interests with its flexible, interdisciplinary curriculum and ability to cross-register into other schools at Columbia University. There is also no place more suitable to study the arts and its impact on diverse communities than New York City, where the numerous new shows and exhibitions enrich academic experience.Describe student life as a member of the ARAD community.
When coming into this program, I did not expect to create such strong relationships with my incredible cohort. I have never been surrounded by such a supportive and close-knit community, who are so passionate about inciting change through the arts. My peers force me to think differently and critically about multiple issues, both in and outside the classroom, allowing me to come into my own as an arts administrator of the twenty-first century.
Who are your three favorite artists, in any medium?
Only three? I would choose mangaka Junji Ito, mixed-media artist Faig Ahmed, and soul singer Sam Cooke.