给艾米丽·伯克黑德, 2020届毕业生, her Rhodes experience laid the foundation for a Master’s in Fine Arts at Michigan State University, 但, 就像许多其他罗兹的学生一样, that wasn’t her original plan when she stepped onto campus as a wide-eyed first year.
Burkhead chose Rhodes because she wanted a liberal arts education and a college that could help her develop close relationships with professors. 原产孟菲斯, Burkhead found that attending college in her hometown allowed her to get to know Memphis in better ways and be close to family.
Burkhead was set on pursuing a pre-law track, 但 quickly found a new passion in her 城市研究 classes, 她在那里, “每次都感觉粘在座位上.” Burkhead eventually majored in 城市研究 with a minor in Film and media studies, 但 it wasn’t just her experiences in the classroom that fostered her passion for art.
Burkhead说, “The Mike Curb Institute gave me a good foundation for doing not just technical skills, 但是创意项目管理, 这对我所在的领域来说很重要.” Her experience with the Curb Institute also helped Burkhead hone the skills needed to manage artistic projects on her own. Burkhead pointed to two shining moments from her time spent in the Institute:
第一个, 大四的时候, she assisted in the creation of the film “Return to Audubon” which the Curb Institute and local recording artist Susan Marshall created to mourn the destruction of 1034 Audubon Drive the first home purchased by Elvis Presley with the royalties from the hit single “Heartbreak Hotel”.
第二个, 伯克黑德帮助建造了挖泥船, 免费在线杂志, 出版所有孟菲斯艺术作品, 音乐, 和文化. The magazine survived the COVID-19 pandemic and now has a big impact on the Rhodes and Memphis art community. Burkhead said that being from Memphis has taught her it is “okay to be weird” in her art.
2020年春季毕业后, Burkhead was looking for a job and thinking of going to graduate school. With the encouragement from Rhodes professor Karl Erickson, she decided on graduate school. She is now at Michigan State University receiving an MFA in Studio Art. Her Rhodes education continues to be an asset, as every semester she takes a seminar which requires the critical reading and in class conversations Burkhead enjoyed during her time at Rhodes. 在她完成硕士学位之后, Burkhead plans to move to Los Angeles and hopefully pursue a PhD in 媒体研究 or 城市研究. She advises current Rhodes students to “do what you want in college and take classes that interest you.” She also encourages students to “communicate with old professors because they will want to help you.”
