The Town of Carrboro recently reinstated its Summer Apprenticeship for the Arts program and are inviting young community members to apply.
The program, which was suspended last year due to the coronavirus pandemic, is designed to inspire and support Carrboro’s emerging young artists. It awards three $1,000 stipends to high school and college students that have secured a summer apprenticeship with an Orange County artist or arts organization.
This year, the program is slightly revised to include both remote or in-person apprenticeships as long as the recipients follow local, state, and national COVID-19 protocols.
Carrboro’s Arts Committee first began rewarding these stipends in 2014 after Town Council member Jacquelyn Gist approached them with the idea. Gist, who doubles as a career counselor at UNC, said she understands the importance of internships and the particular difficulty that students interested in the arts face finding any that pay.
“I wanted young people, high school and college students who are artists, to have the opportunity to explore and develop their craft,” Gist said. “And what better way to do that than with an artist or an arts organization?”
Those interested in applying must reside in Carrboro and must be rising high school juniors or seniors, graduating seniors, college students, or college students that have graduated in the past year.
Applicants can be interested in pursuing visual arts, performing arts, arts administration, or any other artistic field as long as the corresponding summer apprenticeship they’ve established lasts at least 15 hours a week for at least five weeks.
“We’re looking for creative people doing innovative things who are wanting support and wanting to learn from professionals in the field,” Gist said. “So, it’s wide open, excite us!”
While the program has expanded from only including apprenticeships with artists and art organizations in Carrboro to allowing any from within Orange County, The ArtsCenter in Carrboro remains as one of the most consistent organizations to host one of the participants over the summers.
“This is a great opportunity for us to provide a hands-on experience for students to learn more about their interest in art and give them insight on how to turn an avocation in the arts into a vocation,” executive director of The ArtsCenter Dan Mayer said.
The Arts Committee has served to uplift the arts community of Carrboro for over 25 years. In addition to facilitating the apprenticeship program, some of the committee’s other efforts include starting the town’s music and poetry festivals and securing space in the Town Hall and Carrboro Century Center for various exhibits.
“The arts are pivotal to Carrboro’s identity and to our economy, so the town has a long-standing commitment to supporting them,” Gist said. “The Arts Committee was put together to promote the arts in Carrboro, and lots of things have grown out of it.”
Students interested in the apprenticeship program can reach out to arts@townofcarrboro.org for help connecting with a local artist or art organization. A digital version of the application can also be obtained by reaching out to this email address. Applications are being accepted at the Carrboro Century Center as well as through email, mail, and an online form.
Photo via the Town of Carrboro.
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