My advice to UVU students would be to be proactive and take the initiative.
I grew up here in Kaysville, Utah, in a very musical family. My mom is a luthier; she makes and repairs stringed instruments, specifically violins. I grew up dancing, singing, acting, and doing community theater. The arts have always been a passion of mine. Growing up, I wanted to be a Hollywood starlet and act for the longest time, and I wanted to be a dancer.
In high school, my dance company went for a dance workshop at Utah Valley University, and I was really impressed by the facilities. The dance studios were beautiful. The dance professors were passionate about helping dancers succeed and gain fulfilling careers.
My love of dance brought me to Utah Valley University to study ballet for my freshman year. Then, after an 18-month LDS mission in Hong Kong, I switched my major to art history.
A major change was a major change. I think most students can relate to that. It’s pretty seldom that someone will go in declaring a major and graduate with the same.
It was a little bit easier because I’d had that year-and-a-half leave of absence where I really looked at myself and what I wanted for the future. I thought about what my happy places were. Obviously, the ballet studio is a happy place, but I thought about my childhood, where I was most happy.
Museums were a really big place of learning where I understood my view of the world, how it could be expanded, and how to be empathetic. I just thought it would be incredible to be in that space every day. So, I had a lot of confidence that it was the right decision for me.
I had so many amazing moments at UVU, and one of them was getting an internship in Washington, D.C., at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.
I wanted to be in the nation’s capital in this artistic embassy to see why Americans were so proud of their artistic culture, and then I could bring that to UVU. Nothing compares to getting experience in your industry.
I got the internship for the fall semester, but I had planned to attend classes on campus during that time. So, I emailed my advisors and professors and asked, “Is this possible?” They said, “Yes,” and worked hard to make it possible for me to attend online classes and gain this experience.
Courtney Davis created an online class while I was in Washington, D.C. I was the only student enrolled. She would teach the class in person and then record lectures so I could get that credit while I was out of state. I still keep in contact with her, and she celebrates all of my successes. I think it'll be a relationship I have my entire life.
After my internship ended and I returned to UVU, my art history courses were just so much richer because I had this global context.
I did another internship at the Utah Museum of Contemporary Art in downtown Salt Lake City. I learned about museum operations, how nonprofits function, and what role museums play in the community.
After that internship, I graduated, the pandemic hit, and the museum shut down for a few months. When they reopened, I applied for an open position at the museum.
The hiring committee knew me because of my internship. They knew my capacity, excitement, and enthusiasm for contemporary art.
I’ve been the education director at the Utah Museum of Contemporary Art for two and a half years.
My advice to UVU students would be to be proactive and take the initiative. Right now, in my role, I’m lucky enough to manage interns, and something that I focus on with them is career pathways.
Picture yourself in 10 years and list the priorities that you have for your workplace. Is an opportunity for growth important to you? Is money important to you? Is the company’s mission aligning with your values the most important to you?
Figure out now what kind of role you want to see yourself in further down the line — not just like one to three years, but in five to 10 — and then really take the initiative to make that happen.
Your professors will support you, but they won’t coddle you. You need to find your own opportunities outside of school that can pair with your degree and prepare you to step into a professional setting right after graduation.
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