Arts Administration students contribute to arts and culture organizations during summer internships

The Master of Arts Administration (M.A.A.) degree at OHIO harnesses the interdisciplinary and creative power of the College of Fine Arts with an innovative curricular approach that merges arts administration knowledge with training in discipline-specific arts management. Focused on training the artist-administrator, the degree is tailored to provide mentorship, experiential and community-engaged learning opportunities, an examination of access and equity in the arts and career readiness.

The Professional Internship in the Arts, along with the final capstone project, is the required, culminating experience of the M.A.A. The immersive internship typically occurs during the full summer semester and is embedded within an arts and culture organization that aligns with each student’s interests and career goals.

This summer, 22 arts administration graduate students spread out across the U.S. to apply their learning and make meaningful contributions in the field. Locations spanned from Washington D.C. to Kansas, Colorado, Tennessee, Georgia, Delaware and Ohio, as well as included internships with the Chautauqua Institution and Lincoln Center, both in New York

Tessa Searing went to Nashville, Tenn. and interned with the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.

“My internship included several projects focused on collections, exhibits, and artifacts,” Searing explained. “I also supported various departments through educational and family programming and events. This internship reminded me that collections are the heart of an organization: curatorial roles make a huge impact on the public that they serve by inspiring empathy, thought, and change through their collections. The MAA program equipped me with the tools to understand collections and their importance. It taught me not only to recognize the impact of the arts, but also to understand that effectively managing and stewarding arts organizations is central to their success."

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Luvina Cooley completed her internship with Delaware State Parks.

"In my internship, I've developed and implemented opportunities for volunteers at state parks, specifically around gardening and historical interpretation,” Cooley said. “Managing volunteers requires a deep understanding of who your volunteers are, what their motivations are, and what supports they need to feel connected to their work. The authors I read and the speakers I heard from throughout the M.A.A. program showed me program development requires consistent audience input before, during, and after programs for true success, and long-lasting relationships."

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Jacquelyn Stout traveled to Wyoming to intern at the Whitney Western Art Museum, Buffalo Bill Center of the West.

“I was involved in a lot of projects as the Registration and Whitney Western Art Museum Curatorial intern. I led the installation and curation of hanging collections artworks in staff offices, relocated bronze sculptures in preparation for vault renovations, rehoused and organized artworks on paper, proposed and researched objects for removal from the collection, and outfitted and packed crates for artworks going on loan to other museums,” Stout noted. “Key things I had to put into practice during my internship were adaptability and flexibility, ensuring that even when challenges were encountered, the projects were still completed on time. The MAA program gave me the professional training and confidence to adapt on the spot, come up with creative solutions, and interact with all levels of museum management. I feel ready to proceed with a career in the museum field!”

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Lalia Riseng worked at the Chautauqua Institution Visual Arts Galleries in New York.

“One key takeaway from my internship, which is something stressed throughout our course work and that I have really seen in practice, is how essential teamwork and collaboration are to an organization,” Riseng said. “Utilizing the talents and strengths of everyone ensures that we continue to support artists and art spaces. The M.A.A. prepared me to think about big picture things, such as mission-driven work and how to improve accessibility and inclusion, while also navigating day-to-day tasks and demands. Although the career search feels daunting, my arts administration coursework and my experience in the field this summer really affirmed that the work we do is so valuable.”

Each summer, arts administration students also choose to partner with local organizations. Hattie Phillips remained in Athens for the summer, working with the historical Mount Zion Black Cultural Center. One part of her internship work with Mount Zion included meeting with the artist, historians, and board directors to help prepare for the highly anticipated unveiling of a new mural at the historic church.

“One of the most surreal moments of my internship was standing on the walkway of bricks outside the historic Mount Zion Baptist Church, waiting in the hot summer sun with over 125 other folks to see [the artist] Wilde’s incredible mural creation. Even in the heat, you could feel the community’s excitement as the curtain was lowered from the mural. What an awesome achievement and moment,” Phillips shared. “The MAA helped solidify my mindset that the work we do together fosters relationships and builds communities. Mount Zion exemplifies this.”

Beatrice Feldbush also interned in the area with the Tecumseh Theater and Commons in Shawnee, Ohio.

“I did my internship with a historic venue amid a major restoration project. I helped create strategic plans that will guide their next steps as they clarify brand identity and messaging, foster relationships with their audience, and continue telling the story of their community,” Feldbush said.

The importance of connecting with the community and sharing stories were stressed throughout Feldbush’s internship.

“I have learned a lot about the power of a well-told story and how organizations can use them to drive meaningful change,” she added. “This change doesn’t just occur at an institutional level, by building public perception of a brand, but at a grassroots community level as well, by inviting our audience to share the platform, uplifting their voices as they join us in telling the story. My internship experience has reiterated a core lesson I have learned time and time again in the MAA program: art is not only the product that an audience sees– there is also art in the process of creating. In a similar way, arts administration is not only about institutional operations and logistics– it’s about building relationships and inviting our audiences to take part in our story. It requires imagination, creativity, and listening. And it necessitates that we view ourselves, and our role within the organization, as a crucial part of the story as well.”

The M.A.A. program has placed 74 students in Professional Internships since its launch in 2020.

“The internships serve as a critical experience in bridging students’ coursework with the realities of applying that knowledge in practice,” Christi Camper Moore Ph.D., head of the arts administration program, said on the potential impact on the field. “We want graduates of the program to become effective leaders who have meaningful, sustainable impact in the organizations and communities they serve. The program’s goals have always been to equip students with the skills and knowledge to helm arts and cultural organizations, navigate unique challenges in the nonprofit sector, and advocate for policies, resources, and programs that support arts organizations. The next generation of arts administrators must continue to evolve the field, advocating for the vitality, richness, and essentialness of our arts and culture organizations.”

To learn more about the M.A.A.’s professional internship partners and final capstone projects, visit https://www.ohio.edu/fine-arts/master-arts-administration/internship.