• The School of Design and Production participated in a significant convention hosted by the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA) in Orlando. This event allows students and faculty to familiarize themselves with the dynamics of the industry. In November, the school brought 9 faculty members, 30 students, 2 deans and the provosts to attend workshops, lectures, and networking events. As part of the trip there was an alumni event where more than 75 alumni attended providing opportunities for networking.
• This July and August, the Kenan Institute for the Arts is sponsoring eight UNCSA alumni from the Schools of Drama, Design & Production, and Filmmaking, who are now creating performance-based work. Each will participate in one of three creative symposiums at the La MaMa Umbria International in Spoleto, Italy. During the two-week sessions, alumni will take workshops with distinguished artists and visit Spoleto and other Umbrian cultural sites.
• Thirty-two students from the School of Danceat UNCSA have been cast in the corps de ballet of Dance Theatre of Harlem’s revitalized production of Stravinsky's “Firebird,” which will tour to cities across the United States and abroad this fall and spring, including performances in Detroit; Paris; Norfolk, VA; and New York. The performances mark the first time the company has performed its iconic “Firebird” in more than 20 years, presented in its original Caribbean setting, with choreography by John Taras(opens in new tab) and sets and costumes by Geoffrey Holder(opens in new tab).  Student participation in the tour stems from a partnership between Dance Theatre of Harlem and UNCSA, announced in 2024, made possible with funding and programmatic support by the Thomas S. Kenan Institute for the Arts (Kenan Arts) in Winston-Salem. The partnership is part of a larger effort to expand and evolve industry partnerships for UNCSA as one of the pillars of its strategic plan, UNCSA Forward, as well as programmatic initiatives of Kenan Arts.  In addition to the dancers, 10 student musicians from the UNCSA Symphony Orchestra in the School of Music will join the Virginia Symphony Orchestra, under the baton of Tara Simoncic, to perform Stravinsky’s innovative score live for the Norfolk performances at the 2026 Virginia Arts Festival — further extending the collaboration across conservatories and disciplines. The UNCSA Symphony Orchestra’s 2024 recording of Stravinsky’s “The Firebird Ballet Suite,” conducted by Mark A. Norman and released on UNCSA Media, will provide the musical accompaniment for “Firebird” in other tour locations.
• The School of Danceat UNCSA welcomed celebrated alumna Gillian Murphy (High School Ballet '96) back to campus. Fresh off her retirement as principal dancer with American Ballet Theatre (ABT) after nearly three decades, Murphy met with students for a candid conversation with Dean Endalyn T. Outlaw and led a series of ballet and pointe masterclasses.  A conversation on artistry, gratitude and growth.  Onstage in Freedman Theatre, Murphy reflected on the “pinch-me moments” that defined her career — from her early performances with ABT to her final bow as Odette/Odile in "Swan Lake."  Throughout the conversation, Murphy emphasized presence and self-awareness as key to her success, lessons that resonated deeply with the students in attendance.

• In the Art Restart podcast and salon series, the Thomas S. Kenan Institute for the Arts explores how creatives around the world are reinventing their fields and building a new landscape for the arts. This Spring students, faculty, staff, alumni, and the general public heard from preeminent artists including Coka Trevino, Ryan Haddad, Carlos Lopez Estrada, Maria Amalia Wood, JP Reuer, James McAnally, and Anita Fields.
• 2024-2025 Career Development Grants (CDG) – a pilot internship round of spring grants provided financial support for student summer internship expenses.
• The Semans Art Fund made a multi-year commitment to support the School of Filmmaking’s continued participation through 2028 in an exchange program with Konrad Wolf Film University of Babelsburg, the oldest and largest film school in Germany.
• The Office of Career Readiness partnered with Wix Education to offer personal website development tools to UNCSA students. Students learned how to plan, build, and launch a website.

• ABT Expanded Affiliation: UNCSA has been the exclusive educational affiliate of ABT since 2011, with Ballet faculty certified in the ABT National Training Curriculum (NTC). This partnership has introduced opportunities such as expanded pedagogy certification for faculty and students, integration of NTC certification into student coursework, on-campus auditions for ABT Summer Intensives with potential scholarships, teacher exchanges, and ABT's involvement in Preparatory Dance Program exams. A notable highlight is the arts administration fellowship, which enabled a recent UNCSA graduate to secure an extended position at ABT in New York. These initiatives enhance training for UNCSA dancers, foster connections with ABT, and prepare students for diverse careers while offering valuable nonprofit experience.
• The UNCSA School of Design and Production has been gradually transitioning into the realm of Global Entertainment over the past eight years. Global entertainment is a $2.25 trillion industry compared to the theater, film, and television sectors, which collectively amount to $21 billion. As part of this transition, the School of Design and Production has participated in a significant convention hosted by the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA) in Orlando. This event allows students and faculty to familiarize themselves with the dynamics of the industry. In November, the school brought seven faculty members, 14 students, and the provosts to attend workshops, lectures, and networking events.

• Partnership between the School of Dance and the Dance Theatre of Harlem
  • Dance Theatre of Harlem and UNCSA forge multi-year educational and performance partnership:
    • “The collaboration between the School of Dance at UNCSA, a highly ranked conservatory training students in ballet and contemporary dance, and Dance Theatre of Harlem, known for its commitment to educating the next generation of diverse dancers, signifies a new chapter in the evolution of both organizations. Through the partnership, student dancers from UNCSA will have the extraordinary opportunity to train with the renowned artists of DTH in New York while dancers from DTH will visit the UNCSA campus in Winston-Salem to conduct educational activities and performances on campus and throughout North Carolina. The DTH-UNCSA partnership is made possible with funding and programmatic support by the Thomas S. Kenan Institute for the Arts in Winston-Salem and is part of a larger effort to expand and evolve industry partnerships for UNCSA.”
• VR Nursing Education Program Partnership with School of Filmmaking and the WSSU School of Health Sciences
  • The VR Nurse Education Program thrives at the dynamic intersection of health, art, and technology. Developed in response to the national nursing shortage, this program offers a suite of virtual reality (VR) based interactive and realistic simulations. These simulations allow nursing students to develop critical skills and enhance problem-solving abilities in areas such as adult medicine, pediatrics, pharmacology, maternity, and more.
  • Recent articles on the partnership:
    • Virtual Reality revolutionizes nursing education with Patient Ready's innovative approach
    • Winston-Salem State University, UNCSA, and the North Carolina Collaboratory partner to launch virtual reality training for nursing students

• Hired new Director of Alumni Engagement in the Office of Advancement.
• Advanced UNCSA Connects more broadly, to connect students, alumni and incomming students with our robust network of alumni.

• Partnered with the Winston-Salem Symphony to establish a new fellowship program. Beginning in 2024, five graduate string players (receiving full scholarships) will perform with the WSS, and participate in internship and outreach activity, while earning Masters of Music degrees. 

• BOV Alumni Relations Committee redesign.
• Agreed on a shared concern for the limited capacity of a one-person Alumni Engagement Office. Exploring funding for a second alumni-focused position, alumni liaisons in major cities, etc.
• Piloted UNCSA Connects portal connecting current students with alums to answer questions.

• Story Art Studio offers students in-depth instruction on how to use many tools that are currently reimagining or revising all aspects of the industry for their own creative work.  The curriculum in Story Art Studio focuses on using the most emergent technologies to ideate and produce a wide range of work including fiction and non-fiction, live action and animation, installations for museums, galleries, and other forms of digital presentation using technologies commonly referred to as AI. 

Coming in Fall 2024. 

• The Office of Career Development lead four career faculty convenings to begin conversations about how career readiness is addressed on campus, and ways to better prepare UNCSA graduates for the world of work. Agreement coalesced around the need for continuing intentional dialogue about career readiness skills, recognizing what is already happening in every class, and helping faculty and students understand the general career skills that are being built throughout the conservatory education.

• Approved minors within existing degree programs that respond to current global career and market opportunities for graduates.
  • Liberal Arts: Arts Entrepreneurship, German Studies, Creative Writing
  • Music: Multiple Woodwinds
• Progress towards a new degree completion initiative for former students, leveraging in-person and remote learning resources, and connecting past training with current opportunities and career directions.

• A student documentary film from the UNCSA School of Filmmakingwas named as a finalist in the 52nd annual Student Academy Awards, which is organized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.  “Against a Sharp White Background” was one of seven documentary films nominated in the category, alongside projects from graduate programs and other film schools. The film is the first UNCSA student film to reach finalist status since 2014.  Directed by Asahni Williams, “Against a Sharp White Background” explores the effects of integration in education through the eyes of American writer Zora Neale Hurston, looking at the good, the bad and the difficult impacts on the education and experiences of Black students.
• School of Design and ProductionSound Design student Brooke Santiago spent the summer behind the scenes of one of the nation’s premier opera companies. As an audio-visual apprentice at the Santa Fe Opera(opens in new tab) in New Mexico, Santiago gained hands-on experience with complex sound systems, from hanging speakers to operating shows in a fast-paced repertory season.  The opportunity, discovered through UNCSA’s Industry Connections initiative, came after Santiago’s persistence paid off—she applied twice before earning a coveted spot. Over three months, she built technical skills, collaborated with industry professionals, and deepened her understanding of the unique role sound design plays in live performance. The transformative experience left her inspired to bring new ideas to her upcoming film and theater projects at UNCSA.

• La MaMa Umbria Symposium - For over 30 years, the Thomas S. Kenan Institute for the Arts at UNCSA has partnered with cultural organizations, fostering new programs in arts and cultural research, the development of new work, arts education, and career development for artists and cultural leaders. This summer, the Kenan Institute for the Arts is collaborating again with La MaMa Umbria International by sponsoring up to six UNCSA Alumni to attend one of three creative symposiums in Italy designed for artists to work with internationally renowned theatre professionals whose work is shaping the contemporary performing arts ecosystem. UNCSA alumni from the Class of 2024 and earlier (undergraduate and graduate degree programs) are eligible.
• UNCSA Media released Stravinsky’s “Firebird Ballet Suite,” conducted by Mark A. Norman through its media publishing arm UNCSA Media. The album will also be released in Dolby Atmos. The recording is part of a partnership between UNCSA, the Thomas S. Kenan Institute for the Arts, and Dance Theatre of Harlem (DTH), which began in spring 2024 with North Carolina performances of DTH’s iconic “Firebird,” originally choreographed by John Taras in 1982, featuring UNCSA student dancers, two DTH dancers, and live musical accompaniment by the UNCSA Symphony Orchestra. In the next phase of the partnership, “Firebird” will return to DTH’s repertoire in 2026 using this recording as accompaniment and featuring UNCSA student dancers as guests in the corps de ballet on select engagements.

• Produced by UNCSA Media, UNCSA alumna Cashavelly’s most recent release “Meditation through Gunfire” tells a story of female empowerment and has reached over 30,000 streams since its release in October 2024.
• In the fall of 2024 work continued on the production and release of an original recording of the Firebird Suite. This project was a collaboration of UNCSA’s Schools of Dance and Music and the Thomas S. Kenan Institute for the Arts, with UNCSA Media.  Release is expected in the spring of 2025.

• SECU Fellowships
  • In the third year of this partnership between UNCSA and the State Employees Credit Union, we have expanded from engagement for three students in the first year to this year’s cohort of nine fellows.
  • Recent press release on this year’s expanded SECU Fellows cohort:
    • "We are delighted to announce the 2024 SECU Public Fellows Internship recipients," said Rebecca Nussbaum, director of theOffice of Career Readiness and Community Engagement. "These nine talented students are participating in enriching internships with esteemed arts and educational organizations across the state. The support from the SECU Foundation makes these opportunities possible, allowing our students to gain real-world experience that will enhance their artistic and professional growth while contributing directly to North Carolina nonprofits. We are proud of their achievements and look forward to witnessing the impact of their work this summer."

• Working to launch a new media label this fall that will publish, promote and distribute the artistic work of UNCSA students, faculty and alumni.
• Completed a full-length album of School of Music faculty performing works by living female composers.

• Established plans to create career readiness modules that are useful toall conservatories.
• Planning towards incorporation of UNCSA alumni into career classes.