Women of Color in the Arts (WOCA) Membership Application
Women of Color in the Arts (WOCA) is a grassroots, members-driven organization which works to provide professional support to arts leaders - historically those working in the support of the performing arts. WOCA serves as a forum to share and create unique opportunities for learning and development among colleagues including mentorship and leadership training. WOCA exists to provide a network of support and facilitate the exchange of diverse ideas and practices in the performing arts field, all the while cultivating a stronger, more equitable field.
About The WOCA Application Process
WOCA understands the immense mental and emotional labor Black, indigenous, and people of color endure on a daily basis simply as a part of our very existence in this world. It is not our intent to add to this load. This compact application process for WOCA membership is meant to help us collect and coalesce all of our community’s information in one place so that we can identify and connect members, and share meaningful and relevant resources. The demographic information we collect also helps us develop critical tools for organizing, creating space for self-advocacy and solidarity among our members. We thank you for taking the time to become an active participant in our community. We value and appreciate you and your work.
Eligibility for Membership
Before completing your online application, you must review and meet the basic criteria to be eligible for WOCA membership. Basic membership criteria includes:
- You must be a self-identified woman of color.* – defined by WOCA as a woman of African, Latin, Asian or Pacific Island, Middle-Eastern, or Native American descent – historically under-represented groups working in the performing arts field.
*WOCA uses the term “women” to encompass all those that self-identify as women including cisgender and transgender femmes. Our intention is to uplift and address the very specific ways in which this particular group of people, and their multiple identities, are impacted by various forms of oppression including sexism and racism. WOCA uses the term “women of color” as an organizing tool, acknowledging the expression is a political designation, not a biological one, and borne out of a solidarity movement originating from the labor of Black women.
2. You must serve in some type of administrative capacity in support of the performing arts. While WOCA recognizes that administrators’ roles and responsibilities are often fluid within many cultural organizations and that artistic disciplines like the visual and literary arts often work in tandem with performance art (for example, we have many members that work with/in museums), we require that a part of your current professional career be dedicated to the development, cultivation and/or support of the performing arts.
OR
You must be a full-time undergrad or part or full-time graduate student pursuing
a degree in arts administration, arts management, non-profit leadership, cultural policy or a related
field.
Membership Application
If you satisfy the aforementioned basic criteria, please proceed to complete the brief membership application below. Please note that fulfilling basic criteria does not automatically confirm WOCA membership. Along with a completed application, you must submit a PDF copy of both your resume and a short bio. A LinkedIn profile link may be submitted in lieu of the resumé. We ask for these things in order to identify the demographics of our community and to further members’ connections inside and outside of the network. Please note that providing a high-res photo may also part of the application submission process.
Membership Process
Membership applications are generally evaluated bi-monthly on an on-going basis. Applications that are received the last week of the month will be evaluated the following month. Should you have any questions or concerns regarding terms of eligibility or the application process, please email membership@womenofcolorinthearts.org.
Membership Dues
WOCA offers three levels of membership to facilitate access for all our colleagues in the field:
Emerging Leader Membership
$30 – administrators currently with five (5) years or less of professional experience.
PLUS full-time students enrolled in an undergraduate degree program or a part to full-time graduate degree program in arts administration, arts or theater management, arts or cultural policy, non-profit management or a related track.
Established Leader Membership
$60 – administrators with 6-20 years of professional experience.
Senior Leader Membership
$120 – administrators with 21+ years of professional experience.
(Please know that no eligible member will be turned away for their inability to pay dues. Membership dues are the vital engine that helps keep our WOCA community running. However, we never want economic barriers to be a reason for our members to not have access to the resources and wealth of this community. Please note that if life's challenges currently prevent your ability to pay membership dues, WOCA will waive your first year's membership. Please feel free to reach out to us directly at membership@womenofcolorinthearts.org to activate this option.)
Membership Benefits
All three membership levels are granted full access to a wide range of professional development opportunities including, but not limited to, webinars, mentorship/leadership program, panel discussions, networking events, and committee and advisory board participation. Members will have access to our membership directory and have exclusive first-viewing rights to job, funding, and career opportunities. Members can additionally take advantage of special offers throughout the year exclusively provided by our partners, which have included APAP and DanceNYC.