AAAE EDI Fellows - Association of Arts Administration Educators AAAE

The Association of Arts Administration Educators (AAAE) hosts an annual, year-long Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Research Fellow to investigate the intersection of EDI and arts management programs. The Fellow works under the supervision of a Mentor. The Fellow is responsible for collecting data and helping create teaching resources for AAAE members on EDI issues and is open to all students currently enrolled in an arts administration graduate program or related fields or a recent (within 1 year) graduate of said program at the time of applying.

The 2021/22 Call for Applicants is now CLOSED. We will open the 2022/23 Call for Applicants in June 2022.

2021 - 22 EDI Fellow

Originally hailing from Orlando, FL, Jaime Sharp (she/her) is "a mezzo-soprano whose artistry, administration, and activism is rooted in accessibility and change" (Garrett McQueen, TRILLOQUY). She currently resides in Cincinnati on the stolen territories of the Delaware, Miami and Shawnee tribes. She is passionate about advocating for artists of all identities and creating an environment where everyone can thrive. Jaime was selected for the Opera Leaders of Color inaugural cohort with OPERA America. She is also the President and General Director of Opera NexGen, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Hear Us, Hear Them Ensemble, Administrative Manager of the Black Opera Alliance, and Marketing Intern with Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra.Jaime is pursuing her MM in Voice at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM). She is the Vice President of the Graduate Student Association, Treasurer of the Black Student Association, Student Liaison for the DEI Committee and the Marketing and Communications Graduate Assistant.

She is a member of the CSO Multicultural Awareness Council, Women of Color in the Arts, NANM, Arts Administrators of Color, Black Administrators of Opera, BIPOC Arts, the Racial Justice Opera Network. Jaime holds a BM from the University of Michigan and is working on graduate certificates in arts administration with Boston University and the University of Connecticut.

Follow her journey at jaime-sharp.com

AAAE EDI Fellowship Research:

Jaime Sharpe is working alongside AAAE Board Secretary Diane Claussen to research existing full-time diversity positions in major American opera companies. This will be done by gathering information from interviews and surveys to analyze the varied structure and power that these roles hold, as well as the gaps in racial equity that are not being fulfilled.

2020 - 21 EDI Fellows

Trés McMichael is an emerging arts leader and performer who is passionate about community engagement, arts education, and social justice. Trés is an alumnus of Elon University, where he graduated with degrees in Music Theatre (BFA) and Arts Administration (BA). While at Elon, Trés toured Ghana with the Africa Alive Dance Company and conducted research on perceived partner availability for emerging adult Black gay men. He has worked with various nonprofit and arts organizations such as Arena Stage, Maryland Leadership Workshops, and the NAACP. In 2018, Trés was awarded first place in the Hall Johnson Spirituals Competition by the National Association of Teachers of Singing. He currently serves as the Education Programs Manager at the DC Arts and Humanities Education Collaborative. Over the years, Trés has been featured in the Baltimore Sun, Playbill, and Time Magazine and has performed on the stages of Mill Mountain Theatre, Theatre Raleigh, Lyric Opera Baltimore, Signature Theater, and Lincoln Center. Through his work, Trés strives to make the arts sector more inclusive and equitable for all.

AAAE EDI Fellowship Research:

Trés McMichael worked alongside 2020-21 AAAE EDI Liaison Fleurette Fernando, Director of the MA Arts Leadership Program at the University of Houston, and his research focused on Advancing Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Concepts with Undergraduate Arts Administration Students through Applied Theater Techniques.

View Trés McMichael's Final Presentation Here

India Mack is an arts administrator, educator, activist, and creative from New Orleans, Louisiana. She is the co-founder of No Dream Deferred NOLA, a community-anchored theater production company that produces culturally relevant theater. As the creative director of NDD, India designs and implements all educational programs. In addition to her role in educational programming, she is an Equity and Justice for Institutional Change Facilitator. EJIC is a program of NDD that provides tools, resources, and training to organizations looking to cultivate meaningful shifts within their organizational culture and EDI analysis.

AAAE EDI Fellowship Research:

India Mack worked alongside 2020-21 AAAE EDI Liaison Fleurette Fernando, Director of the MA Arts Leadership Program at the University of Houston, and her research focused on Investigating the Need for Arts Leadership Programs at HBCUs.

View India Mack's Final Presentation Here

2019 - 20 EDI Fellow

Anne-Margaret Childress is a graduate student at Le Moyne College where she studies Arts Administration. She teaches African American Theater in the African American Studies Department at Syracuse University where she completed her first master’s degree in Pan African Studies. Anne-Margaret has been nominated for a Syracuse Area Live Theater Award for Best Director (Community Theater) for Syracuse Shakespeare In-The-Park’s 2019 production of The Tempest. She serves on the Production Board for Syracuse Shakespeare In-The-Park. Anne-Margaret’s research interests are creating opportunity for diversified populations and promoting arts education as an occupation.

AAAE EDI Fellowship Research: Anne-Margaret Childress worked alongside 2019-20 AAAE EDI Liaison Dr. Yuha Jung, Associate Professor of Arts Administration & Director of Graduate Studies of the Department of Arts Administration at the University of Kentucky, and her Fellowship Research Project focused on the following theme: Mentoring and Shadowing Models: How Support Programs Increase Opportunity and Aid in Creating Stable Education Careers. The goal of her research was to create a plan for a mentoring program for the Association of Arts Administration Educators (AAAE) that reaches out to graduate students in the association and provides support and expertise in the field.

View Anne-Margaret's Final Presentation Here.

2018 - 19 EDI Fellow

Morgan Williams holds a B.A. In Art History and Classical Studies from the University of Pennsylvania and an M.S. in Arts Administration from Drexel University, where she wrote her master's thesis on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Foundation Funding for Arts and Culture. Her research interests include the professionalization of arts administration, EDI in arts and culture, and fundraising and development trends. She currently works at Drexel University in the department of Enrollment Management and Student Success. Morgan is also the Executive Directory of The A Cappella Project Philadelphia, a volunteer-based non-profit which brings together adult singers, offers educational programs, and raises money for childrens’ performing arts scholarships in Philadelphia.

AAAE EDI Fellowship Research: As the inaugural EDI fellow, Morgan worked alongside Brea Heidelberg, PhD, Program Director & Associate Professor, Drexel University's Westphal College of Media Arts & Design. She was tasked with creating a bibliography of Arts and Culture related EDI resources, compiling a list of EDI statements from Arts and Culture organizations in the US, and conducting original research on the intersection of EDI and arts management programs. For her research, Morgan administered a survey to members of the Association of Arts Administration Educators. The survey examined whether and how arts administration programs are incorporating EDI values and learning objectives into their curricula. The objective of the study was to provide an overview of current practices and make recommendations for future improvement.

View Morgan's Final Presentation Here.

View the Bibliography Here.