The Wexner Center for the Arts Receives Over $150,000 in Funding from Every Page Foundation to Support the Path Fellowship Program

The Wexner Center for the Arts, the multidisciplinary contemporary arts laboratory at The Ohio State University, has received a grant for $158,932 from Every Page Foundation, which is dedicated to advancing equity in the arts and sciences.

The funding will support the continuation of the Wexner Center’s pioneering Path Fellowship, providing artists and creatives with professional experience and training opportunities at a nonprofit cultural institution. 

The application portal for the 2024–25 Path Fellowship is open through May 31. All applicants are welcome. Candidates who are underrepresented in the field due to socioeconomic barriers, race, ethnicity, disability, or other factors are strongly encouraged to apply. The one- to two-year fellowship was created for young professionals to gain access to a range of opportunities and experiences across multiple departments and disciplines, forming a new pathway to success and contributing to the pipeline of arts leaders.

“Every Page Foundation is thrilled to partner with the Wexner Center for the Arts for the first time with the innovative Path Fellowship,” says Every Page Executive Director Breea Govenar. “Our commitment to fostering career pathways for the next generation of arts leaders is important to us, and we’re excited to see the fellowship evolve. We also know that Path Fellows support the Wexner Center’s cross-disciplinary programming, including events and projects that center feminist issues, which further aligns with our mission.”

The Path Fellowship launched in 2021 with inaugural fellow Reg Zehner, a curator, DJ, and Columbus College of Art & Design graduate who has moved on to developing content and marketing strategy for New York’s prestigious Skowhegan School of Painting & Sculpture. According to Zehner, “The Path Fellowship was something I truly did need in terms of where I wanted to go.” 

Zehner was followed in the fellowship by Jaz Nappier, a College of Wooster graduate whose previous professional experience includes work with Actors’ Theatre Columbus and Columbus Children’s Theatre. Nappier moved from her fellowship into a permanent position at the Wex as administrative coordinator in the Learning & Public Practice Department.

"After coming out of lockdown, I felt lost, and I thought that I was done learning,” Nappier says. “I also thought there were these limitations on what I could or could not do in the arts industry. During my time as a performing arts student, I only saw certain types of people in administrative or director's positions. I had long abandoned the idea that someone who looks like me and already feels so small in the world could ever attain that status. The Path Fellowship was enlightening and drove my curiosity farther than what I was taught art professionals and organizations had to ‘look like.’ The mentorship I received from [Head of Learning & Public Practice] Dionne Custer Edwards was the supportive push I needed to see past the boundaries of this industry and toward being part of a legacy of breaking them."

"The Wexner Center for the Arts’ Department of Learning & Public Practice is especially committed to supporting artists interested in arts learning, teaching, and working with the public,” explains Custer Edwards, who is leading the search. “This fellowship is also looking to engage candidates who are historically underrepresented in the arts and cultural sector. Even if an artist who applies for this fellowship does not plan on a career in cultural institutions, this opportunity provides a supportive environment where fellows can continue to practice art making, learn more about how cultural institutions work, imagine what might be possible in an arts or creative career, and train with arts and culture practitioners who work hands-on in a variety of learning settings."