Dance/USA Reveals 2024 Archiving And Preservation Fellows

Dance/USA, the national service organization for the dance ecosystem, announces the selection of four Fellows who will work with dance artists and organizations to preserve, organize, and create access to their archives as part of the Dance/USA 2024 Archiving and Preservation Fellowship Program. The 2024 Archiving and Preservation Fellows are Isabel Brandt, Lacy Molina, Amy Schofield, and Benja Thompson. Learn about the Fellows.

The theme of this round of Fellowships, generously supported by the Mellon Foundation, is Culture Bearers and Connectors. The artists and organizations the Archiving Fellows will work with are Cashion Cultural Legacy, Dianne Walker, LEIMAY, and The National Institute of Flamenco. The Fellows will be paired with professional archivist mentors including: the Curator of the California Ethnic & Multicultural Archives at UC Santa Barbara, a processing archivist at the Harvard Theatre Collection Houghton Library, a freelance Albuquerque-based archivist, and the Archivist of NYC-based art center The Kitchen.

Learn about the 2024 projects and sites.

"This cohort is an extraordinary group of archivists and artists who are committed to preserving, uplifting, and celebrating the diverse histories of dance and performance in the United States," said Dance/USA Archiving Specialist Hallie Chametzky. "I cannot wait to see the profound impact they make on the organizations and artists they work with and the field at large."

"The Archiving and Preservation Fellowship Program is an extraordinary program. It fills a gap in the dance ecosystem by providing archiving services to artists from historically marginalized communities and enriches the ecosystem with a generation of archivists trained in dance-specific approaches to preservation work," said Dance/USA Executive Director Kellee Edusei. "We are grateful for the Mellon Foundation's generous support of the Archiving and Preservation Fellowship Program over the past four years and hope to continue this deeply meaningful initiative in 2025 with a new funder in light of the Foundation's shifting funding priorities."

With the launch of the 2024 Archiving and Preservation Fellowship Cohort, 20 artists and organizations will have made a significant impact on the dance ecosystem, preserving, documenting, and uplifting a wide range of dance legacies. Funding inquiries can be directed to Dance/USA Director of Advancement Raechel Hofsteadter at rhofsteadter@danceusa.org.

About Dance/USA

Propelled by our belief that dance can inspire a more just and humane world, Dance/USA will amplify the power of dance to inform and inspire a nation where creativity and the field thrive.

Established in 1982, Dance/USA champions an inclusive and equitable dance field by leading, convening, advocating, and supporting individuals and organizations. Dance/USA's core programs are focused in the areas of engagement, advocacy, research, and preservation. Learn more about Dance/USA at danceusa.org.