“Your big opportunity may be right where you are now.” – Napoleon Hill

My placement at Young Audiences of Maryland (YA) has shown me more than anything that there is an endless amount of opportunity in this world. Being with YA these past few months has opened me up to the world of arts administration, and I never saw myself loving being behind a desk. Working in their Development department, under the supervision of Jennifer Andiorio, has been a gratifying and enriching experience. She truly has made sure every opportunity presented to me has not only been a learning opportunity, but also something that peaks my interests and challenges me.

The major projects I have had the pleasure of contributing to were the annual Impact Breakfast event and the Year in Review. For the Impact Breakfast there was months of preparation, this is their biggest donor event of the year. Invitation packets, acknowledgement letters, Powerpoint presentations, task lists, etc. had to be prepared for a smooth and successful event. The Year in Review involved a lot of gathering of content on all YA has accomplished within the past fiscal year. I worked on condensing said content to fit a tri-fold pamphlet, finding appropriate photos to go with the content, transitioning this content onto the website, and many more tasks. I was honored enough to be mentioned in this year’s Year in Review with a photo I took of Visual artist Pam Negrin’s topographical textural map of Maryland, created with the 4th grade class of New Market Elementary School.

At Young Audiences I learned many things that I can carry on to any organization. These acquired skills include: donor prospecting, grant writing, constructing proper acknowledgements, connecting with employees in various departments for information to complete a major task and lastly, building proper connections. Through YA I have met many amazing artists, board members, and even Catherine Pugh, Mayor of Baltimore.

My love for the arts has grown tremendously in my time spent here. This organization is doing an impeccable job of integrating arts with education and getting closer each year to being able to supply this resource to all youth in Maryland. I wholeheartedly support everything Young Audiences stands for and hate the thought of leaving at the conclusion of this fellowship. However, I was ecstatic to be offered a position as a College readiness mentor for the Bloomberg Arts Internship (BAI). BAI is a paid summer internship program for high school students. It gives students experience working with an arts or cultural institution. It has just introduced Baltimore as its new program site, following New York and Philadelphia. I am enthusiastic to embark on this journey with GBCA, YA, and the 25 AMAZING students that have earned this opportunity of a lifetime.

Raina Allmond

Rising senior at Coppin State University, Urban Arts Major

Photographer