Vanessa James Appointed Coordinator for MHC Arts Initiative

Vanessa James is MHC's new arts coordinator. She appears here in the toga she wore to the opening of The Moon & the Stars: Afterlife of a Roman Empress.

President Joanne Creighton and Dean of Faculty Donal O'Shea have appointed Vanessa James, associate professor of theatre arts, to the new position of arts coordinator for the College. "I'm thrilled to have this position," says James. "I have long had an interest in all the arts and in arts advocacy." James, who has taught at the College since 1991, will serve as arts coordinator while also teaching film and theatre courses part time. Her appointment underscores the administration's commitment to helping campus arts departments and programs integrate the arts across the College curriculum.

According to Mount Holyoke Art Museum Director Marianne Doezema, a group of faculty representing the arts on campus has been meeting for more than three years to discuss visibility and integration of the arts at the College. One of the group's goals has been to develop a thematic focus once each year around which collaborative, interdisciplinary programs, as well as courses, can be planned and implemented." This semester's arts theme is "women and power."

As arts coordinator, James sees the "arts at Mount Holyoke" initiative as having a multipurpose mission. "The first is to coordinate all arts events on campus," she says. "We want everyone to know what everyone else is doing. Right now, we're getting feedback from students, faculty, and staff who are particularly interested in the arts on campus." In addition to commissioning a poster promoting this year's theme, James and Kristen Lefebvre '00 have created an "Arts at Mount Holyoke" Web site at www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/programs/arts. The Web site provides links to arts-related sites at the College and a campuswide arts listings calendar. James would like to see more student-generated listings on the calendar and is working to promote that goal.

James and the arts group want to encourage student interest in new art forms. "We want to spark students' curiosity about sampling the broadest possible range of arts," she says. "We're trying to find out what would make this easier and more alluring. Arts literacy is very important, and we want all students to see the arts as vital to the educational process, not just for entertainment."

Finally, James wants to create a higher profile for arts on campus. As Doezema says, "When I first arrived on campus in 1994, I felt that our rich resources were not utilized fully by students or faculty. Now that the programming is stronger each year and more effectively integrated into the curriculum of various arts departments, we are making a serious effort to make arts events known and available."

For James, the timing of her appointment is ideal. "It was exciting to comeback from sabbatical, refreshed and energetic, to find that this subject was seriously under discussion and that much progress has been made." James is currently finishing a longterm book project on mythology and art, and is also working on the first major revival of Noel Coward's Bittersweet.