UNG's arts strategy hits the road

For Dr. Jeff Marker, director of UNG's School of Communication, Film & Theatre, the tour served as both a listening session and a launchpad.

"Our academic programs are designed around project-based and experiential learning. The conversations we had during the Impact Tour with industry leaders reaffirmed that we're doing things the right way, but in the arts we have to constantly update what we do to continue preparing our students for current and emerging career pathways," Marker said. "The Impact Tour was a great vehicle for doing that. We also forged new connections and reconnected with innovative creators and companies. These conversations will yield new partnerships, new opportunities for students and new collaborations."

Those opportunities are already here for students like Luiza Parodia Penha, a senior from Cumming, Georgia, pursuing a Bachelor of Fine Arts in theatre arts, now in her second summer interning with Alliance Theatre.

"I have made the most of all my academic experiences. It's really great when you have a big win and you accomplish what you want," Parodia Penha said. "But learning how to move on from not accomplishing what you want and turning that into a positive has been a great thing I've learned at the University of North Georgia."

And for alumni like Jayson Waddell, now camps manager at Alliance Theatre, the connection to UNG still resonates.

"What I learned the most at UNG is how to really collaborate and build my community, which ultimately set me up for success right out of college," Waddell said. "I landed a job at the Alliance Theatre, where I've been for the last 17 years. My work at UNG really sky-rocketed me into my career in a way I don't think would have happened if I went somewhere else."