A Welcome Message from Laila Maher
Dean of Student and Alumni Affairs
Now more than ever it is crucial for artists to be supported as they pursue their craft. The life of an artist as well as that of a student involves much more than the classroom and the work itself, and this is where the Office of Student Affairs comes in. In addition to guiding new students through the process of transitioning to the School of the Arts, we plan the School-wide orientation, School of the Arts Convocation, and support student groups, events, and activities.
We also play a critical role in connecting School of the Arts students to the larger university and necessary services, and help students navigate many of the central offices including Health Services (which houses the Office of Disability Services, Insurance, Immunization, and Counseling and Psychological Services), Columbia Residential, Public Safety, University Life, the International Students and Scholars Office, and the Registrar's Office. Our office also helps to uphold many of the School and University-wide policies and we manage the School’s disciplinary procedures.
The Artists’ Resource Center, also part of our Office, maintains information on funding opportunities and career resources for students and alumni at the Columbia University School of the Arts, and provides consultations to students and alumni to help them look for professional development opportunities and more.
After graduation, the Office of Alumni Affairs provides more than 7000 alumni artists, creators, and leaders with opportunities to stay connected with the School of the Arts, the Columbia Alumni Association (CAA), and one another through alumni programming, benefits, a monthly newsletter, and collaborations with CAA Arts Access.
Our ultimate goal is to support our students and alums while they pursue their education as valued members of our dynamic community and as they navigate their time after graduation.
Student & Alumni News
From March 8 until April 20, 2024, the prestigious Rachel Uffner Gallery in Manhattan’s Lower East Side will present Plan B, the second solo exhibition by Visual Arts Alumna Susan Chen ’20.
Bicheng Liang ’21 and Yixuan Shao ’21, the artistic duo that comprises Alchemyverse, met in the Visual Arts + Sound Art Program at the School of the Arts.
Miami's Rubell Museum and Miami New Drama have partnered up to present The Museum Plays, a series of six new plays running from February through March at the Rubell Museum. The series is co-directed by Theatre alumni Michel Hausmann ’14 and Tatiana Pandiani ’16.
Visual Arts alumna Cecilia Caldiera ‘23 has unveiled her new solo exhibition, Our House, at Subtitled NYC.
The winners of the 67th annual Obie Awards were recently announced, with several notable Columbia theatre artists on the list.
Directing student Camille Hamadé has been awarded the BAFTA-Yugo Short Film Commissioning Grant, which provides a cash award to support further development of a short film project.
Carlie Hoffman '16 has been awarded a 2024 National Jewish Book Award for her poetry collection When There Was Light (Four Way Books, 2023).
Writing alumna Tracy K. Smith ’97 recently published To Free the Captives, a new memoir, with Knopf.
Writing alumni Ashley Nelson Levy ’12 and Adam Z. Levy ’12 met on their first day in the Fiction program at the School of the Arts. The two would later marry and, in 2015, found Transit Books, a nonprofit indie press dedicated to publishing works in translation and international literature.
Film alum Jonathan Van Tulleken '10 has co-executive produced the first two episodes Shōgun, a new series set to premiere on FX on February 27, 2024. Van Tulleken also directed two episodes of the first season.
SFFILM and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation recently announced the recipients of their annual grants, the Sloan Science in Cinema Filmmaker Fellowships, and the Sloan Stories of Science Development Fund. Five talented individuals, including current Film student Katherine Burns and Film alum Vivienne Shaw '23, have been chosen to receive these prestigious grants to aid in the development of their feature length narrative cinematic projects.
Ways and Means, a debut novel by writing alumnus Daniel Lefferts '19, was published by Abrams Books in February 2024.