This article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon, Jan. 12, 2011 - More than four years after her death, legendary dancer, choreographer, anthropologist, author and social activist Katherine Dunham is assisting a St. Louis graduate student as she pursues her own career in the arts.
Antionette Dickens, who attends University of Missouri-St. Louis, has received the first Katherine Dunham Internship from St. Louis' Regional Arts Commission. The internship, designed to help African Americans forge a path in arts management, includes a $2,500 stipend.
Dickens, who is working toward a master of arts in communications and a graduate certificate of study in non-profit leadership, will learn a variety of critical skills working with the RAC. Helping the arts organization in its grants process will prepare her for a future as an arts administrator. Dickens will also work to create networks for other minority students who are eying an arts management career.
RAC commissioner Sara Burke and her husband, Jack, created the internship. Burke studied dance with Dunham in East St. Louis, where Dunham lived for many years.
"Jack and I hope to see African Americans running cultural institutions in St. Louis and believe this is one step to mentoring these future leaders," Burke said, in a news release. "Many talented people are not being considered for these positions because they do not have the networking connections or the access to professional development in this field."
