Sweet Briar College Magazine - Fall 2018

ON THE QUAD
on the
QUAD
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around campus
Friends of Art Award Leads to
VCCA DREAM INTERNSHIP
FOR SWEET BRIAR GRAD
sbc.edu
Thanks to the Friends of Art, recent Sweet Briar grad Alexa
Dahlin ’18 didn’t have to look far to find her dream internship.
Dahlin is the first recipient of the organization’s graduate
internship at the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, an
international artists’ colony adjacent to campus.
A $5,000 stipend allowed the former business major with an
Arts Management Certificate to spend 10 weeks this summer
working on a number of projects with VCCA staff. One of
them: developing a plan and strategy for the VCCA’s upcoming
50th anniversary in 2021. A big chunk of her time was
spent compiling the center’s history.
“Being able to do some archival work is great because that has
always been an interest of mine,” Dahlin said when we spoke
with her over the summer. “I’m super happy that I’m getting
hands-on experience with that.”
She also worked with Kirsten McKinney, the VCCA’s director
of communications, on several other projects, including,
as McKinney put it, “magically” organizing a “tremendous
backlog of processed applications,” posting fliers around town,
helping out with the VCCA’s Open Studios in July and with
day-to-day operations such as greeting fellows in the office,
sitting in on staff meetings and keeping track of entries to the
VCCA’s annual Instagram contest.
“Much of what Alexa has done, to us, is a Herculean
achievement,” McKinney admitted. “Given our small staff and
demanding mission of providing creative space to 24 fellows at
any given time, certain tasks can fall by the wayside as we respond
to more immediate needs. We are so appreciative to the
Friends of Art for establishing this internship and for Alexa
and the time she has given to us this summer.”
Dahlin loved the variety, but that wasn’t the only thing: “One
of the most exciting parts about my internship is being able to
be a part of a women-led arts organization,” she said. “With
all my work experience I’ve had over the past four years, I have
never worked for a practically all-female staff. The open communication
and leadership are truly refreshing and remind me
a lot of the atmosphere at Sweet Briar.”
For Dahlin, this was internship number five. Focusing on the
arts has meant a steady buildup of skills, and she’s learned that
she’s on the right track. “All of these experiences have given me
a well-rounded foundation that I’ve been able to use here at the
VCCA,” she explained. “Being at the VCCA this summer has
made me confident in my passion of being an arts advocate, as
well as working for a nonprofit organization.
“After I complete my internship at the VCCA, I am looking
to move south — either Birmingham or Atlanta — and work
in development or marketing in the nonprofit sector,” she said.
With a résumé like hers, that next step should be easy.
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