By Deborah C. Gerbers
Colleen Huddleson is the executive director of the Division of Creative Arts at Saint Francis University. The Cincinnati, Ohio native has a passion for her USF work, her students, and bringing the community together.
“I provide professional support to the program directors, faculty and staff in the Division of Creative Arts with curriculum development, implementation and evaluation,” explained Huddleson. “I coordinate with other university departments and academic divisions in a variety of areas including fund-raising, special events, publications, data analysis, budget development and management and I also coordinate the work of creative arts staff (Creative Arts Coordinator, Gallery Director, USF’s Jesters Director and Woodshop Director. I truly have the BEST JOB EVER! I have the privilege of working with a team of brilliant artists and musicians and dancers to inspire and support and build future generations of creative professionals. I take great pride in serving the faculty and staff as the Executive Director of the Creative Arts. Together, we facilitate the growth, the transformation, and the support for our students. This is more than simply a place of learning. It is a culture that is supportive, curious and forward thinking. There is great value to the whole person here at USF and it generates a strong sense of purpose and community.”
Huddleson said the very best part about her job is simple: the students. “They are the best. Seriously. They are brilliant and authentic and creative and motivated and devoted and inspiring. They are absolutely addicting. I love being a part of this higher learning institution where the students are constantly evolving. It is such a dynamic environment where their growth fuels our growth. Truly magical. And then, in addition to that, I get to work with this amazing team of faculty and staff! It’s unbelievable to me. The faculty and staff are the greatest asset of this institution and I have always felt honored to work with them building creative resources that provide innovative and supportive learning environments for our students.”
Huddleson also spends a great deal of time working on community involvement. “At USF, we take our reputation for excellence in the arts seriously and respond to community needs to build our students’ experiences,” she said. “We are also very committed to service and are regularly contacted for creative project support in various communities. To capture this work, we created a new the Community Arts and Service Engagement (CASE) minor. I am really excited about it as it will serve as a practical, experiential, hands-on complement to a student’s creative professional development. It pulls all of our programs together – all of the visual arts, music technology and dance. The arts are integral in every industry and when opportunities arise, we diligently organize teams to achieve success and build these dynamic learning experiences for our students. All of these interactions build the life cycle of their education and our community partners can leave the biggest imprint.”
For Huddleson, success is measured in various ways. “After last year’s shut down and cancellation of performances, exhibitions, concerts, awards and graduation, we started this new academic year with a renewed sense of our team and the education we deliver to our students. It has made this year really exceptional,” she said. “Our success is also expressed through our brilliant alumni. Seeing them thrive and create a better world is most fulfilling.”
Huddleson lives in Fort Wayne with her husband, Jason, and their two children, Arthur (7) and Vivien (4). “They are the coolest people I have ever met,” she said proudly. “I could fill your magazine with stories about being their mom. It is the most fulfilling part of my life. I can’t say enough about Jason. He is CRAZY talented, runs his own graphic design business and is an incredible dad and husband. I would have never believed that a chocolate shake 24 years ago would have landed us here. I am the luckiest lady on earth.”
In her spare time, Huddleson loves to cook and also spend time in nature. “Jason and I love to get our kids out in the woods,” she said. “We spend a lot of time hiking and finding water for them to splash in. We also love attending the vast number of arts events we offer in the region. We have REALLY missed this over the last year.”
She also has served on Fort Wayne’s boards of ARCH, Architecture and Community Heritage and the Fort Wayne and is presently serving as Secretary of the Board for the Fort Wayne Ballet and as Chair of the Fort Wayne Historic Preservation Commission. “Fort Wayne is a better place because of these phenomenal organizations,” she said.
Living in Fort Wayne is ideal for Huddleson and her family. “It is perfectly situated in the center of major cities and phenomenal natural resources. I love our house and the parks and the schools. It is just the perfect place for our family right now. We can easily head out to the major cities surrounding us for a concert or exhibition that we want to see over a weekend —AND, we have abundant state parks and ACRES sites to retreat to. It has the best of everything really. I also appreciate the incredible support the community has for the arts. We have some phenomenal organizations with leaders who are seeking to incorporate the arts into their planning and programming.”
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