In this episode, Eric speaks with art and culture nonprofit consultant Charmaine Jefferson who talks about how her passion for the arts came about; from training in ballet and tap dance as a child and always having been surrounded by art. She talks about her days as a professional dancer, her experience as an African American and the challenges she faced during the “Black is Beautiful Era”, her education in Dance, followed by law school — which paved the way for her prolific career in Arts Administration and engaging with various institutions; museums, dance companies, performing houses, botanical gardens, science centers, including capital renovation, construction projects and board service, arranging charitable and public art programs… to eventually becoming the Executive Director of the California African American Museum (CAAM). They discuss her late uncle artist John Riddle and his iconic works, being related to Carter G. Woodson, the founder of Negro History Week and coming from a family of war protestors; that would engage in political debates and the importance of researching and documenting one’s family tree. And her most recent venture her consulting firm Kélan Resources that enables her to consult with a variety of organizations; International Associations of Blacks in Dance, museums and historic houses around the country.
Guest Bio: Native Angelino; Charmaine is an arts and culture advocate and administrator. She serves nonprofits through Kélan Resources, her cause driven consulting firm dedicated to integrating art, history, culture, business and diversity into the DNA of education, community, philanthropy, and public and private collaborations. As an active volunteer, she recently completed 8 years as a gubernatorial appointee on the California Arts Council, and as a Director on the Board of Arts for LA. She continues to serve as a college trustee and academic committee chair for the California Institute of the Arts, as a mayoral appointee and vice chair of the City of Los Angeles’ Cultural Affairs Commission, on the African American Advisory Council for PBS SoCal, on the Advisory Board of Children Mending Hearts and on the Advisory Committee for the Los Angeles County Cultural Affairs Commission’s “Cultural Equity and Inclusion Initiative.” Professional concert dancer turned lawyer and arts administration, she served as senior dance program specialist and site visit coordinator for the National Endowment for the Arts. In the corporate world she worked as a civil litigator for the law firm of Holland and Knight; as a corporate director for Just Toys, Inc.; as vice president of business affairs for de Passe Entertainment; and director of show development for Disney Entertainment Productions. Served as deputy and acting commissioner of New York City’s Department of Cultural Affairs, 6 years as executive director of Dance Theatre of Harlem helming that institution’s capital expansion ($7.8M) and recently completed 11 years of dual service as the executive director of the state-agency California African American Museum (CAAM) in Los Angeles and vice president of its nonprofit partner Friends, the Foundation of the California African American Museum. Charmaine received her B.A. in Dance from the University of California, Los Angeles; M.A. in Dance Education from New York University and J.D. from Georgetown University Law School.
