BENTONVILLE, Ark. — Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art announced the Alice L. Walton Foundation gave the museum one of the largest endowments in the country dedicated to developing the next generation of arts leadership.
The foundation gave a $10,000,000 dedicated to expanding the museum's internship program, “Commitment to Future Arts Leaders.” For over a decade, Crystal Bridges has developed opportunities for students to expand their practical experience through hands-on learning at the museum and the Momentary.
“Five years ago, we strengthened an already successful internship program to focus on hiring and nurturing leaders from diverse backgrounds. Today we recognize there is still work to do,” says Alice Walton, founder, board member, and chair emeritus of Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art. “I believe it’s essential for museums to build an inclusive culture, and in order to do so it’s imperative to educate and develop future arts leaders.”
Crystal Bridges is partnering with Spelman College in Atlanta, Georgia, and Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee, to recruit interns from populations currently underrepresented in arts leadership. At the Momentary, interns will receive training in theatrical stagecraft, music festival management, art fabrication, and sophisticated culinary production.
Crystal Bridges says Walton’s endowment gift allows the museum to add an administrator focused solely on the internship program providing a more equitable experience and allowing curators and other content experts to concentrate on student learning. The intern coordinator will install an evaluation system to continually measure the overall impact of the program – to monitor the quality of the individual experience, discover new aspects of museum practices, and prepare interns for additional coursework and employment opportunities.
"This generous gift embodies everything I’ve known Alice to care about as a museum leader and arts patron – access, diversity, and nurturing the next generation, a representative generation, of arts leaders,” says Rod Bigelow, executive director and chief diversity & inclusion officer at Crystal Bridges. “This gift asks Crystal Bridges to continually sharpen its focus on diverse student learners and helps to establish a new standard in the field.”
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