Michelle Cuevas ‘04

Major:

English

Field site:

The Whitney Museum of American Art

Cuevas, an English major, thought she wanted to work in public relations someday, but she had little idea of what the work entailed. Professor Jackall made it possible for her to do her fieldwork in the public relations division of the Whitney Museum’s Education Department. The result was transformative.

Cuevas worked with Youth Insights, an outreach program that brings inner city kids to the Whitney and teaches them about the inner workings of an art museum. She worked in the galleries with them for two days a week and focused on implementing creative projects (such as parties and other special events) for the museum with the staff when the children were not there.

“It actually turned out to be perfect,” said Cuevas, when asked what she thought of her experience. “The program was a great idea and it really went well. You’d definitely want a semester,” she said, implying that a month was too short to do everything in the city.

“It was an amazing trip,” she continued. “We saw every facet of New York City. After learning about it in the fall class, here it was for real.”

“I froze to death!” said Cuevas. “Part of why I wanted to participate in this program was to see if I could live in New York City after college. I realized that New York City was just too much energy. It is exhausting. The people there are eclectic and very ambitious.”

But Cuevas was quick to emphasize just how much of a learning experience it was. “I learned more in a month in New York than I did in class in a semester,” she said. “You can study criminal justice (for example) all you want, but the experience of being in a real-life situation—that’s the only time you start learning in a deeper way.”

The program was an eye-opener for Cuevas in many ways. “I realized that I really like museums and event planning now. I love the energy of it. In fact, I’ve applied for jobs in a few museums. It was definitely helpful,” she concluded.