An Education’s Impact

Visual Arts

An Education’s Impact

Summer 2024

May 26, 2024

The professor’s lessons inspired a lifetime of artistry. Last year, a group of visual arts alumni who graduated in the 1970s emailed me. Looking back on their 50-year careers as professional artists, they found themselves returning again and again to the words of a former mentor, Reed Kay, a professor emeritus of painting. Professor Kay was stern but supportive. He was generous with his time. He cared about his students. He was a talented artist who led by example. He was a master teacher.

The alumni wanted to celebrate Professor Kay, whose teachings they continued to hold dear. After a series of conversations, they decided that they would chip in, along with Kay’s family, and create an endowed prize fund in honor of their favorite teacher. The Reed Kay Prize would be a merit-based award given annually to a continuing undergraduate student and provide financial assistance with materials costs.

Not long before his 99th birthday, I invited Professor Kay to a reception where I honored him with the CFA Dean’s Distinguished Service Award and surprised him by announcing the creation of the Kay Prize.

Energetic, thoughtful, and critical of universities that champion STEM disciplines over pursuits of artistic inquiry, Professor Kay captivated the room. The alumni in attendance became college students again for an evening. Everyone else (myself included) was gifted an audience with a legend. The room was electric.

Every day, inspiration happens in CFA classrooms. I am in awe of the many ways our faculty seek to nurture the potential in their students. André de Quadros, a professor of music and music education, helps incarcerated students regain their voices through our Prison Arts Program. Karin Hendricks, chair of music education, and Michelle LaCourse, chair of the string department, are winners of the University’s highest teaching awards and model excellence in every class session.

We have all been profoundly impacted for the better by a teacher or mentor. I would love to hear about a lesson you learned from a BU faculty or staff member that continues to resonate. Please email me at cfadean@bu.edu.

If you would like to contribute to the Reed Kay Prize (or contribute to another fund supporting student scholarships or urgent needs), I hope you will consider making an online donation today by visiting bu.edu/cfa/give.

Harvey Young

Dean of CFA