June 2023 Alumni Newsletter

Welcome to The June 2023 Edition of the Official Alumni Newsletter, where we connect you with news and updates from The National Alumni Association of The Cincinnati School for Creative and Performing Arts.

The Official Alumni Newsletter of The National Alumni Association of
The Cincinnati School for Creative & Performing Arts

JUNE 2023 NEWSLETTER
“The Graduation Issue”

A Message from the Alumni President:
“Schools Out Forever!”

Fellow Alumni,

On behalf of the National Alumni Association of The Cincinnati School for Creative and Performing Arts, it is my pleasure to formally welcome the Class of 2023 as official members of our Alumni Association. 2023 is a very special year because this year marks the 50th anniversary of the School for Creative and Performing Arts. With 50 years of cultivating artistic and academic excellence, the Class of 2023 is a prime example of the SCPA legacy living on in future generations. This class joins us as the 44th graduating class of SCPA and we look forward to having a long and wonderful relationship with them. Our goal is to connect with the Class of 2023 as you take your next steps in life. By keeping in touch with the Alumni Association, we welcome you into a family tree that now spans 44 years. We are currently in the development of various projects that will help recent graduates in their future endeavors, such as a pilot mentorship opportunities, opening various chapters of the organization in a city near you, and the announcement of our 2023 Dare to Dream Scholarship Winners!

Highlights about the Class of 2023:

– First Class of “Legends” to spend K-12 (13 years) in the new SCPA building
– 100% Graduation Rate
– Most of the Class are have been accepted into 2-4 year college or post-secondary program

You should have had the chance to register for the Alumni Association in class and an account on our alumni website has been created for you! If you haven’t registered with the association yet, please register on our website.

Lastly, I hope to continue to serve your class to the best of our ability! I encourage you to stay connected to us and your peers, as they will be friends for life. Push forth into the world in a lifelong effort to “find your voice.” I hope that as you start on your next chapter in life, you’ll build your own legacy on the framework of SCPA, whether you continue your artistic training or venture into another professional field. We know that in time, the road will rise to meet you, and hopefully bring you back home to SCPA!

Congratulations,

Joshua Trotter ’14, Alumni President 2023

Become an Alumni Member Today!

When you become a member of the Alumni Association, you are not only reconnecting with those who graduated alongside you, but all of the beautiful extended family members that make up the SCPA Alumni.

JOIN OR RENEW

Introducing the Bob Ohr Archives!

The National Alumni Association of the Cincinnati School for the Creative and Performing Arts is thrilled to announce the launch of the Bob Ohr Archives. Bob Ohr – who was the photographer for SCPA from 1983 to 2007 – has shared and entrusted his collection of SCPA photos with NAAcSCPA, and we are proud to be able to share his collection with all of you on the SCPA Alumni website.

JUNE 2023 ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT

Schuyler McCray, Drama ’07

Schuyler McCray is an educator, rapper, and spoken word artist. He says that his time at SCPA truly helped him develop self confidence and public speaking skills.

Schuyler attended SCPA from 5-12th grade, where he majored in Drama. He attended Kentucky State University from 2008-2013, and graduated Cum Laude with a B. A. in English, with concentration in Creative Writing.

Schuyler’s professional career has been spent teaching, performing spoken word, acting, and rapping. He is most proud of his time at Breakthrough Cincinnati, where he was an administrator/teacher for six consecutive summers. There, Schuyler taught 9th Grade Leadership, a course he designed centered on college readiness and self advocacy. For the last nine years, he has worked for Cincinnati Public Schools in various teaching and coaching roles. He is currently a founding co-teacher at Idea Public Schools on the Westside of Cincinnati. Schuyler is also a founding teaching artist for Elementz HipHop Cultural Art Center.

NOMINATE THE NEXT ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT

SCPA Alumni T-Shirts Coming Soon!

You asked, we listened!

Beginning this summer, the NAAcSCPA is proud to offer SCPA Alumni merchandise. Register for the Alumni Association to be the first to know when shirts go on sale.

Join an Alumni Committee Today!

Alumni Events & Reunions

Our Alumni Family is always reuniting for good ol’ SCPA fun. Don’t just see it on social media, be there!
LEARN MORE

In Memoriam

With sincere affection, we remember our classmates and friends who have passed away since 1973. We request and would sincerely appreciate the names and graduation year or school position of any of our family for whom we have had no prior knowledge of their passing.

Please submit information to info@scpaalumni.org

SCPA NEWS

Stay up to date on what’s happening at SCPA!

SCPA Website

DONATE TO THE ALUMNI ASSOCIATION

Copyright © 2023 National Alumni Association of the Cincinnati School for Creative & Performing Arts, All rights reserved.

Mailing Address:
108 W Central Parkway, Cincinnati, OH 45202

Email:
info@scpaalumni.org

This issue of the Alumni Bravo has been put together by
the Alumni Marketing and Communications Committee

Our Mission: The Association’s Mission is to strengthen connections among and between the School’s alumni, current students, faculty, and staff; to provide valued services, as defined by the policies adopted by the Association’s Board of Directors from time to time; to provide ongoing financial support for the School; and to support the School’s mission of fostering academic and artistic excellence.

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#SCPA4LIFE

Membership Campaign Mentorship Letter 2023

We invite you to take a moment and reflect on your time at SCPA. Imagine, how old you were when you first got accepted, and how challenging it was to navigate an arts school, academics, social life, and more. Now we want you to imagine a teacher or mentor who made your time at SCPA even more meaningful.

A Message From Alumni Mentors

SCPA Family,

We invite you to take a moment and reflect on your time at SCPA. Imagine, how old you were when you first got accepted, and how challenging it was to navigate an arts school, academics, social life, and more. Now we want you to imagine a teacher or mentor who made your time at SCPA even more meaningful. That’s exactly what the Alumni Association is striving to do by allowing our alumni to give back to the SCPA community in meaningful ways. We hope you’ll consider becoming a mentor.

Warm Regards,

The NAAcSCPA Alumni Board of Directors

SCPA’s Making a Living in the Arts (MALITA) program needs Alumni Mentors!

SCPA is looking for Alumni willing to mentor current seniors through the Making a Living in the Arts program, which helps to prepare and connect our students to career networks. If you have career insights in the arts to share and don’t mind giving your time to chat on the phone, answer an email, or meet for a coffee to give advice, WE WANT TO CONNECT WITH YOU!

Our students are looking at all kinds of arts related career fields. We need folks in traditional arts disciplines as well as administration, marketing, business, communications, trade unions, college reps and much more.

If interested, we will put you in touch with a student and hope you can attend one of the program sessions by Zoom to answer questions as part of a panel.

Topics include:

Career Exploration: Jobs, gigs, self-employment, and side hustles
Resources: Tactics to make your arts career dreams a reality
Materials: Resumes, pitches, and positive use of social media
Fast Start for the Arts: Trades, unions, and jumping directly into the industry after HS
Career Geography: What you need to know to move to a major market city and make it
The Digital Frontier: Creating an arts career from anywhere
Away We Go: Goal setting for your future career

If you are interested in taking part in this program, please fill out the linked sign up sheet below and someone from the SCPA Alumni Association will reach out to you soon.

Thank you!

Stay Connected, Become an Alumni Member Today

JULY ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT

Lauren Meese, Instrumental Music ‘15

Lauren Meese is a proud REALTOR® and Career Development Lead for Pivot Realty Group. When she is not helping clients with their dream homes, she is helping hire and license brand new agents into the business.

Lauren has appeared on numerous motivational podcasts and was granted the honor of inducting the class of 2023 into the SCPA Alumni Association. Lauren attended SCPA K-12th grade.

After graduating, she attended Mount St. Joseph University and graduated with a B.S. in Athletic Training. Once Covid hit, Lauren ‘pivoted’ careers and started her journey in real estate. She is now able to impact more people than she ever envisioned for herself. Her success has given her the opportunity to give back to her community. Her most recent accomplishment is the launch of her own app in the app store.

Lauren credits SCPA for giving her the confidence to pursue her dreams and is forever grateful for the numerous opportunities that have been given to her, as a result of her efforts and experiences at SCPA.

SAVE THE DATE:
THE SCPA ALL CLASS REUNION

In honor of SCPA’s 50th Anniversary, the NAAcSCPA is proud to announce our very first ALL CLASS REUNION!

Featuring:
– Live performances
– Alumni showcase
– Silent auction

More information to follow.

RSVP on Facebook

To Learn More about the Alumni Association and about other ways to give or help out, click the link to our SCPA Alumni Website.

SCPA Alumni Website »

STAY CONNECTED TO OUR SCPA ALUMNI COMMUNITY
FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA!
Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Youtube
or go to www.scpaalumni.org for more information.

Copyright © National Alumni Association of the Cincinnati School for Creative & Performing Arts

Our mailing address is:
Info@scpaalumni.org

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SCPA All Class Reunion, 2023

In honor of SCPA’s 50th Anniversary, the NAAcSCPA is proud to announce our very first ALL CLASS REUNION on December 16th, 2023 that will feature live performances, an alumni showcase, and a silent auction.

SAVE THE DATE

In honor of SCPA’s 50th Anniversary, the NAAcSCPA is proud to announce our very first ALL CLASS REUNION!

Featuring:

– Live performances
– Alumni showcase
– Silent auction

More information to come. Stay tuned!

Interested in performing or donating your time and talent to make the All Class Reunion a success? Just fill out the form below and we’ll be in touch.

RSVP ON FACEBOOK

JOIN THE ALUMNI ASSOCIATION

When you become a member of the NAAcSCPA, you receive a full year of benefits, including:

Opportunities for service and leadership, including student mentorships and roles on the Board/Committees
Access to the Alumni Directory
Invitations to National Social and Networking events
Voting rights in Alumni Association elections
Members-only exclusives

JOIN OR RENEW

This is your cue! Help us celebrate SCPA’s 50th Anniversary by making this the most successful year yet! And STAY TUNED, because a very special and exclusive gift to our new members will be offered and announced this month!

Sincerely,

The 2023 – 2024 NAAcSCPA Board of Directors

DONATE TO THE ALUMNI ASSOCIATION

FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA

Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube and scpaalumni.org

Copyright © 2023 National Alumni Association of the Cincinnati School for Creative & Performing Arts, All rights reserved.

Our mailing address is:
108 W Central Parkway, Cincinnati, OH 45202

Our E-Mail address is:
info@scpaalumni.org

This newsletter has been put together by
the Alumni Marketing and Communications Committee

Our Mission: The Association’s Mission is to strengthen connections among and between the School’s alumni, current students, faculty, and staff; to provide valued services, as defined by the policies adopted by the Association’s Board of Directors from time to time; to provide ongoing financial support for the School; and to support the School’s mission of fostering academic and artistic excellence.

Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.

#SCPA4LIFE

April 2023 Alumni Bravo

Welcome to The April 2023 Edition of the Official Alumni Newsletter, where we connect you with news and updates from The National Alumni Association of The Cincinnati School for Creative and Performing Arts.

ALUMNI BRAVO!

April 2023

The Official Alumni Newsletter, where we connect you with news and updates from The National Alumni Association of
The Cincinnati School for Creative & Performing Arts.

Welcome the 2023-2024 Alumni Board of Directors

It is with much pride that we welcome the newly voted-in members of the National Alumni Association of the Cincinnati School for the Creative and Performing Arts. The new members are as follows: Christina Bilz ’12, Patrice Barnes ’05, Gerrick Kennedy ’05, and Kenneth Gibson ’87.

We also wouldn’t have been able to do any of this without the votes of our dues-paying alumni members! Thank you so much for supporting us as we transition into a new year with new ideas, new programming, and brand new faces on the alumni board of directors!

ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT APRIL 2023

NyKeba Banks ’99
Firefighter

NyKeba Banks is a proud firefighter and EMT of the last 7 years, she also on her way to becoming our cities first female bomb tech servicing Engine 14 Downtown.

While attending SCPA as a Vocal and Drama Major, many may have believed Nykeba to be a”shy” person, but those who truly knew NyKeba, knew how goofy her personality was!

After graduating from SCPA in 1999, Nykeba served in the Ohio Army National Guard. After retiring from the guard 13 years ago, NyKeba Banks has dedicated her life to serving her community in any way she can! She mentors and teaches young fire cadets the ropes of firefighting, She is also a volunteer for Queen City Swish working as a basketball coach and teacher. Nykeba was featured in a National Campaign for Secret Deodorant called Strong in the Fire and she models clothing for Fechheimer in commercials. We are very proud of Nykeba and wish her much success in the future! #SCPA4LIFE

Send us An Email! Nominate the Next Alumni Spotlight!

It’s A New Year!
Do you need to Renew Your Alumni Membership?

Renew/Sign Up for Membership

2023 Dare to Dream Scholarship Application
NOW OPEN!

Click Here to Apply or Learn More

Support our Scholarship Fund 2023

GET INVOLVED!
JOIN AN ALUMNI COMMITTEE!

Join an Alumni Committee Today!

Alton Fitzgerald White’s Broadway Benefit Concert
for SCPA Vocal Scholarships!

CONTACT SCPA FOR
MORE INFORMATION
(513) 363-8000

SCPA EXCELLENCE HIGHLIGHT

To close out Black History Month at SCPA (and kick off Women’s History Month), SCPA played host to Karyn Parsons of “Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” fame. After talking about her experiences on and off the set, Ms. Parsons was kind enough to answer questions from staff and students. She also shared her experiences with Sweet Blackberry, an organization whose mission is to bring little-known stories of African American achievement to children everywhere.

SPRING AUDITION FOR SCPA!

Upcoming SCPA Performances!

Purchase Tickets Now for SCPA Shows

Meet our Past Scholarship Winners!

Click the link to watch videos all about our most recent Alumni Scholarship Winners!
Watch Here