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From the desk of Trey Devey: Envision Interlochen at 100

I invite you to help refine Vision 2028, the strategic priorities that will guide Interlochen towards our Centennial.

Trey Devey speaks with attendees at an event

Dear Friends,

The spring flowers starting to bloom across the Interlochen campus feel especially fitting as a post-pandemic world inches into view. A season of new beginnings can be felt in energetic preparations for Festival, Interlochen Arts Academy’s end-of-semester showcase of artwork and performances and in joyful planning for the historic return of campers to Interlochen Arts Camp this summer, with robust health-and-safety protocols in place. We are also eagerly anticipating our Arts Academy students ages 16 and older receiving their first COVID-19 vaccinations this month as part of Grand Traverse County’s rollout.

Buoyed with optimism for the future, we also look towards a momentous milestone on our horizon: Interlochen’s Centennial.

In 2028, just a few short years from now, Interlochen Center for the Arts will mark its 100th anniversary. Our centennial presents an extraordinary opportunity not only to celebrate Interlochen’s pioneering leadership in arts education, but also to rally our community behind ensuring Interlochen’s future as the premier destination for young artists.

As we approach our second century, we begin an exciting new chapter. The addition of our new Dance Center, as well as the first dedicated rehearsal and performance space for Interdisciplinary Arts, paired with the opening of the Herbert H. and Grace A. Dow House this fall, will mark the completion of a campus master plan that has guided 14 major campus improvement projects over the past 30 years. We will emerge from the pandemic with artistic, academic, and residential facilities that reflect the excellence of our programs, allowing us to focus fully on the people and programs that power Interlochen’s world-class educational offerings.

To guide Interlochen’s continued growth amid an increasingly competitive camp and high school landscape, we’ve crafted a set of strategic priorities known as Vision 2028. Simply put, our ambitious vision outlines how we plan to enhance the student experience, make Interlochen accessible for all deserving young artists, and recruit a diverse and global student body.

I invite you to learn more about Vision 2028 as part of a one-of-a-kind virtual roundtable discussion series, Envision Interlochen at 100. This unique series offers the opportunity to hear firsthand about Interlochen today, and to visualize all Interlochen could achieve by our centennial in 2028.

During each Envision Interlochen at 100 event, you’ll hear directly from me and select members of our board of trustees as well as from students and faculty. You’ll have the opportunity to take part in a live Q&A session and, after each meeting concludes, you’ll be invited to tell us what you think of Vision 2028 through a short survey. Please join us for one of the following sessions:

Thursday, April 29, 2021 | 1 - 2:15 p.m. EDT | Register Here
With faculty and student panelists from the Academic, Dance, and Interdisciplinary Arts divisions

Thursday, May 6, 2021 | 8:30 - 9:45 p.m. EDT | Register Here
With faculty and student panelists from the Academic, Music, and Visual Arts divisions

For those of you who are especially passionate about Interlochen Public Radio, sessions this spring will be scheduled that will focus exclusively on IPR.

The success of Vision 2028 depends on the commitment and support of people like you who care deeply about Interlochen. From the first summer of the National Music Camp in 1928 to the launch of Interlochen Online last summer and countless milestones in between, each defining moment at Interlochen has come about through the passion and dedication of our extraordinary community of alumni, friends, students, faculty, and staff.

This interactive series will also give you an insider’s perspective on this unprecedented year. Our current students and faculty will inspire you with their resilience, creativity, and focus. You’ll be moved by student panelists such as Arts Academy film and new media major Maya Shah (IAA 19-20, IAC 14-16, 18), who shared during our first Envision Interlochen at 100 session why she chose to come to Interlochen.

“I want to make films that can change the world,” Maya said. “If my films don’t get to 100 million people, I want to get to at least one person and make them feel something, or make them feel not alone. That’s one of my huge goals with my art, and was ultimately one of the reasons I came to Interlochen.”

Together, we can ensure that Interlochen propels creative changemakers like Maya toward realizing a more just, vibrant, and empathetic future for us all. We can accomplish a great deal as we envision Interlochen thriving into its second century and beyond.

With best wishes,
Trey

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