The Fine and Performing Arts Matter

CFA Faculty

“The fine and performing arts matter.”

…according to Harvey Young, CFA dean, “they define our lives.”

November 18, 2019

Over the past few years, I have noticed an alarming trend in the way mainstream media describe the pursuit of a college education. Rather than focus on the importance of learning or having a social impact, coverage often centers on the anticipated starting salaries of select career paths. There are two problems with this approach.

The first is that it conflates career significance with salary. Obviously, this is not true. Schoolteachers, social workers, and, yes, artists play a major role in our society. Can you imagine your life or our world without them? It would be a bleak place: uneducated, overwhelmed with problems, and deprived of culture.

The second is, it presents a narrow view of the types of careers available to arts majors. CFA alumni regularly tell me that their BU education taught them how to innovate, pitch an idea, work within a team, raise money for and promote a venture. These skills inform their daily work not only as painters, musicians, and theatre makers but also as investors in emerging markets, lawyers, entrepreneurs, and advertising executives.

Needless to say (but I’ll say it), the fine and performing arts matter. They define our lives.

Within CFA, we champion the arts at every stage of life. Through our collaboration with Boston Medical Center, we help expectant and new mothers create lullabies for their children. We are the teachers of teachers, equipping educators of youth with strategies to assist students in realizing their potential. Our high school programs bring together the best of the best—think Top Gun for music, theatre, and visual arts—and make them better.

Every day, we mentor the most promising, academically talented undergraduate and graduate students and help launch them into careers of their choosing. Along the way, we forge the bonds of community, uniting a college campus as well as a city.

The expansive reach of the arts is truly staggering: the power of a laugh inspired by the comedic genius of actor Michaela Watkins (’94); the deep storytelling of a single image created by photographer Elisabeth Caren (’96); the lived experiences captured in a painting by Sedrick Huckaby (BUTI’95, CFA’97); the joy and delight of family time inspired by the incredible artistry of Feld Entertainment.

If you have the time, send me an email at cfadean@bu.edu and let me know why the fine and performing arts matter to you.

Harvey Young, Dean of CFA