Presbyterian College announces new Visual and Performing Arts Department

Presbyterian College is excited to announce that it is combining its art, music, and theater departments into a new Department of Visual and Performing Arts.

PC president Dr. Anita Gustafson said the reorganization is designed to strengthen the college’s commitment to the fine arts by uniting them, which will provide opportunities for innovation and growth.

“The establishment of the new Visual and Performing Arts Department ensures that the fine arts remain a vital part of Presbyterian College’s liberal arts tradition,” Gustafson said. “I believe that combining the knowledge and experience of our talented fine arts faculty will focus resources and creativity where it counts the most – towards our amazing students.”

Interim provost and vice president for academic affairs Dr. Erin McAdams said the new department will create a synergy between the arts disciplines without sacrificing their individuality.

“We will continue to offer high-quality curricula in these areas and invest in the visual and performing arts,” McAdams noted. “The advantage of this organizational merger is that it will allow for more interdisciplinary connections that enable our faculty and students to interact and connect in innovative ways, while also having a more efficient organizational structure.

“By having one department where everyone is coming together, we can get more creative, more interdisciplinary, and more connected. This will benefit our students, who will have more opportunities to feel a greater sense of belonging in a larger community that is focused on the visual and performing arts.”

McAdams also emphasized that, while the current majors and minors will remain intact, there are also opportunities to expand current course offerings, such as in graphic design or digital art, that modernize the curricular options that students have. She also noted the importance of the fine arts to the College’s overall curriculum.

“Art and music are not just an important part of the Presbyterian College experience for majors in these fields, but also of our general education curriculum,” she said. “Every single student who attends PC will continue to take at least one class from a faculty member who is in the visual and performing arts.”

PC students from all disciplines will also continue performing in a wide variety of ensembles, including the PC Orchestra, the Jazz Band, the PC Choir and others.

The college is also strengthening its efforts to recruit students interested in the fine arts. This summer, PC hired alumna Kipper Edens Ackerman ’97 to serve as assistant director of admissions for visual and performing arts and director of the choir – a new position devoted to uniting talented young artists and performers with the college’s equally talented faculty. In addition to directing the college choir, Ackerman’s role is to help reinvigorate interest in the arts at PC.