Announcing the Cultural Equity & Belonging Advisory Council
We are pleased to announce the volunteers of NEC community members who will comprise the newly formed Cultural Equity and Belonging (CEB) Advisory Council for the 2021-22 academic year. The Council will serve as a thought partner to President Kalyn and the Director of CEB Designate, Monique Van Willingh, providing their unique perspectives, advice, and ideas to help shape institutional policies, systems, and initiatives.
We are thankful to the following students, alumni, faculty, staff, and trustees for their commitment to serve on the inaugural CEB Advisory Council:
CEB Advisory Council Members
“I hope that this council can help us build depth in the community’s understanding of students of different backgrounds, so more can fully take advantage of the expertise of the amazing NEC faculty.” —Christine Lamprea ‘13 MM
President Andrea Kalyn, Co-Chair
Monique Van Willingh, Co-Chair
Margie Apfelbaum
Arielle Armstrong
Megan Barret
Rebecca Bogers
Bruce Brubaker
Paola Caballero
Susan Calkins
Tami Cherdack
Mark Churchill
Darynn Dean
Dominique Eade
Eliot Fisk
Barbara Glauber
Helen Greenwald
Thomas Handel
Leah Hennessy
Paul Katz
Robert Labaree
Christine Lamprea
Jae Cosmos Lee
Eden MacAdam-Somer
“Excited to do the inner and outer work and inspired to create an environment in which music can thrive.” —Darynn Dean ’19
Jahnvi Madan
Joshua Major
James Markey
Stratis Minakakis
Mai Motobuchi
Hankus Netsky
Thomas Novak
Nnamdi Odita-Honnah
Daniel Orsen
Merry Peckham
Akshitha Ramachandran
Laura Reyes
Felicia Sandler
Ken Schaphorst
Andrew Schartmann
Bert Seager
Laura Smolowitz
Benjamin Sosland
Steven Sweat
Valerie Szepiwdycz
Montserrat Torras Salvador
Elizabeth Van Voorhis
Erica Washburn
Frances Wilmerding
Beyonce Zambrano
At their orientation meeting in late April, members shared their hopes for what can be achieved together:
“I hope to make NEC a place I can view as highly for its inclusivity as I view it when it comes to musical rigor and opportunities” –Jahnvi Madan ’23, Jazz Studies
Current undergraduate Jahnvi Madan ’23 joined with the hope “to make NEC a place I can view as highly for its inclusivity as I view it when it comes to musical rigor and opportunities.“ Now finishing her first year as a Jazz Studies major, Jahnvi says, “I find myself excitedly talking about the amount I have grown musically here, but having to say “but” every time I think about my experiences as a woman of color.” Jahnvi is no stranger to social change work, having developed and taught an Anti-Racism + Jazz curriculum for Seattle JazzED, and as president of NEC's Students Advocating for Gender Equity (SAGE).
Faculty and staff members expressed a desire to make meaningful changes to existing structures: “I am increasingly concerned about socio-economic exclusions in my field and the power structures that create and exacerbate these exclusions,” shared Stratis Minakakis, Composition and Music Theory faculty. “I hope to play a role in subverting this trend.” Incoming Provost Ben Sosland said, “My hope is that we will do great things (not just talk about them!) to advance access and equity so that everyone who walks through the door feels like NEC is the place where they belong.”
“My hope is that we will do great things (not just talk about them!) to advance access and equity so that everyone who walks through the door feels like NEC is the place where they belong.” —Provost Ben Sosland
Alumni participation from all areas of NEC, from Prep to undergraduate to graduate, is also strong within the advisory council: Sphinx Medalist Christine Lamprea ‘13 MM shared her hope that “this council can help us build depth in the community’s understanding of students of different backgrounds, so more can fully take advantage of the expertise of the amazing NEC faculty.”
Prep alumna Akshitha Ramachandran ’16 Prep, hopes to make NEC “more welcoming and accessible...at a Prep and collegiate level,” and composition alumna and former faculty member Montserrat Torras Salvador ’03 MM, ’10 DMA hopes “that we will be able to take significant steps towards dismantling structures that perpetuate racism.”
Darynn Dean ’19 expressed a vision for healing: “Hope that our group can assist in identifying and healing systematic racism, oppression, discrimination, etc. inherent in the institution through tangible action plans. Excited to do the inner and outer work and inspired to create an environment in which music can thrive.”
