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Penland School Core Fellowship Program
The Penland Core Fellowship Program is a work/study fellowship that offers students an opportunity to participate in classes and be an integral part of the Penland community. Core students are employees of the school with compensation consisting of a stipend, room, board, and tuition. Core students are chosen for one to two years, continuing on to a second year after a positive review at the end of the first.
This program is designed to offer students in transition the opportunity to explore artistic interests and career possibilities in a supportive artistic community. The program takes advantage of Penland’s ever-changing, interdisciplinary learning environment and encourages students to develop their studio work while studying with top instructors in ten craft media. Designed for emerging artists, this unique program can serve as a bridge between under-graduate and graduate studies, offer a self-motivated alternative to academic programs, or prepare students for a professional career as an artist/craftsperson. In culmination of a season of study, core students participate in the annual Core Show, a group exhibition of work completed throughout the year.
Application Questions
- Core students who are most successful come into the program with clear goals beyond the program that help guide and ground them during their time at Penland. What are your individual artistic goals? How would the Penland Core Program help you to meet these goals?
- Because of the intensive nature of life at Penland, it is important that core students have the ability to maintain balance between personal, professional, and studio life. Describe how you will balance work demands with class commitments and studio objectives.
- Core students have a very public role at the school—in classes and in their school jobs—and are expected to be positive ambassadors for the school and community. Please give examples of how you would represent Penland to students, instructors, and guests. Describe what your strengths and weaknesses would be as a member of a small community.
- Core students perform jobs that are crucial to the operation of the school. What specific job skills can you contribute to Penland’s operation/improvement? What experience do you have that would exhibit your confidence and ability to accept responsibility, maintain a professional attitude, and supervise others? Describe situations in which you have exhibited flexibility and calm under rapidly changing conditions.
- Why do you want to be a Penland core student at this particular time?
Application Process
- Applications must be received in our office by 5:00 pm on Friday, October 10, 2008. Incomplete applications will not be eligible for review. Applicants must submit the following materials for consideration:
- A written statement of intent that addresses the five application questions (no more than two pages total)
- Ten slides or printed images of your most recent work (high-quality inkjet prints are fine). Slides/prints must be clearly labeled with the artist’s name, title of work, date of completion, materials and dimensions. We do not accept image files.
- Three letters of recommendation: at least one letter must address your artistic commitment/development, and at least one letter must reference your work or service experience. Please provide references with a copy of the application questions so that they may specifically address our criteria.
- Contact information (name, title, phone number/email address) for two people who have directly supervised you in a work or service position.
- A current résumé /CV (no more than two pages)
Send application materials to
Penland School of Crafts
Attention: Leslie Noell/Cynthia Lindeman
P.O. Box 37
Penland, NC 28765
Notification of decisions about new Core Students will be made by mid December. New core students are expected to arrive at Penland in late February. Questions about the Penland Core Program may be addressed to
Leslie Noell, phone, 828.230.7660; email ephemerastudio@charter.net
Cynthia Lindeman, phone, 828.765.2359, ext. 19; email cynthialindeman@penland.org
Penland School of Crafts is an Equal Opportunity Employer.
