Development and Marketing Internship for Young Dancers in Repertory

Are you looking to gain tangible skills as an arts administrator?

Are you looking for ways to bolster your resume? 

Do you believe in the future of the arts? 

Do you have great ideas to put into motion? 

Help Young Dancers in Repertory bring the arts to more children in the community! 

Gain real experience with Young Dancers in Repertory (YDR) by taking on urgent and important development and marketing tasks.   Our hope is that the intern will take practical skills and knowledge to advance their career as an arts administrator. 

Qualifications and Expectations: 

At the end of the Development and Marketing Internship, the student should exhibit a deeper understanding of development and marketing in dance and arts organizations.  Given YDR’s size, the internship will provide a unique opportunity for interns to take on important and urgent responsibilities.  As a result, students will learn tangible skill sets to apply to future endeavors.   

Interns are expected to:

*Bring an energetic sense of CURIOSITY: come eager with questions and a desire to learn.   

*Present a STRONG INTEREST IN DANCE, the performing arts, or youth programming. 

*Be a SELF-STARTER!   

*Have STRONG WRITTEN AND VERBAL COMMUNICATIONS as well as strong organizational skills. 

*Bring a POSITIVE ATTITUDE, AN OPEN MIND and be willing to work on various tasks.   

The Development and Marketing Intern will have the opportunity to gain real experience during the course of the internship through a multitude of activities: 

*Prospect Research:  Learn to use technology to prepare profiles for various individual prospects.  Learn the importance of understanding prospects and their values for cultivation events and meetings and its role in fundraising.   

*Stewardship and Cultivation:  Learn the importance of understanding a donor’s needs and how to manage corresponding follow up activities.  Prepare strategies for moving donors through the giving continuum.  Help the Development Manager plan follow up activities. 

*Corporate Sponsorship:  Prepare proposals for corporate grant opportunities.  Learn to identify marketing opportunities for corporations and match them with YDR’s programming.   

*Foundation Philanthropy:  Learn the role of foundation fundraising for nonprofit dance, performing arts, and youth outreach organizations.  Assist the Development Manager in researching foundations and preparing letters of inquiry, proposals and follow up reports.   

*Marketing and Branding: Do you have experience working with Adobe Dreamweaver?  Learn to use Dreamweaver and help keep YDR’s website up to date.  Align YDR’s marketing materials and copy to with core messaging and branding for various promotional activities. 

*Social Media:  Integrate YDR’s development and promotional activities with Facebook and other social media platforms. Learn and implement techniques to engage individuals through social media communications.   

*Business Development: Develop YDR’s contract work in the community.  Follow through on promotions to increase business.  Evaluate and implement strategies to promote YDR’s Center for Dance Studies in the community in order to increase enrollment in classes.   

*Learn Valuable Time Management and Prioritization Skills:  Create learning and task objectives.  Create a calendar of activities and build your resume.   

*General Administrative:  As with any position, there will be administrative responsibilities as a follow up to daily activities.   

Regular hours at YDR are from 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM, Monday through Friday, with a one-hour lunch break.  Interns can choose to work full-time or part-time along with the option to work on particular projects at home.   

YDR’s Mission

To provide professional training that fosters growth and communication through dance via creative, educational arts programming and performances for children, youth and the general public. 

 

YDR’s History 

Carol Mezzacappa and Craig Gabrian founded YDR in 1985 as a pre-professional touring ensemble for teenage dancers.  By demand, YDR opened the Center for Dance Studies in 1995.  A year after that, YDR began partnering with public schools to provide arts-in-education dance residencies.  In 2008, YDR began providing year-round afterschool arts programming at P.S. 127.   

Overview of Programs 

YDR impacts the lives of youth helping them to grow into productive adults.   

Teenage Touring Ensemble – A pre-professional, tuition free performance and rehearsal program for youth ages 10-18.  Ensemble members perform modern dance works, as well as multicultural pieces in up to 20 free performances a year. 

Center for Dance Studies – Providing classes in modern dance, classical ballet and other contemporary dance forms.  It is a structured, nurturing environment for young dancers ages 4-18.  Families value the Center’s offerings because YDR focuses on proper training and technique and provides affordable programs—including financial aid or full scholarships for low- to moderate-income families.  

Learning Through Dance (Arts-in-Education) – The Learning Through Dance program currently brings public schools arts-in-education dance residencies every year. YDR has helped classroom teachers meet rigorous content and achievement standards at local, state and national levels since the inception of the program in 1995.

Out-of-School Time Programming (OST) – The OST program is YDR's partnership with NYC's Department of Youth and Community Development to provide year-round dance, theater, visual arts and homework help programming.  Activities take place afterschool and in the summer at P.S. 127 in Dyker Heights, Brooklyn.

Celebrating Diversity Through Dance – YDR’s free multicultural performance and workshop series designed to engage the diverse immigrant communities of South Brooklyn.  Each event utilizes YDR's rich international/folkloric repertoire, which includes 12 pieces ranging from African-American, Spanish, Scandinavian and Chinese cultures. 

Dancing Through Brooklyn Parks – An annual series of free dance classes and performances in South Brooklyn parks that reach over 1,200 children each summer.