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SECCA prepares to build on relationship with NC Museum of Art

The Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art in Winston-Salem is about to enter a new phase in its relationship with the North Carolina Museum of Art. 

The museum art lovers know as SECCA has been affiliated with the Raleigh-based North Carolina Museum of Art, or NCMA, since 2007.  

Officials say several changes behind the scenes will usher in a new era of programming opportunities.

The SECCA Foundation Board of Directors will dissolve this summer, and the museum will then be overseen by the NCMA Foundation. Several seats will be added to represent the Piedmont and Western North Carolina, and a new affinity group will be formed for local supporters.

William Carpenter is SECCA’s executive director. He says the recent hiring of two new curators, along with an enhanced budget, will lead to what he calls a “clear uptick” in the quality of exhibitions.

Carpenter says the museum will be able to program "more robustly," with greater opportunities for its education and outreach programs.

"And generally, I think we're also going to start seeing some major upfits and renovations and repairs to our physical facilities," says Carpenter. 

Carpenter adds SECCA will be able to maintain a commitment to Winston-Salem and Forsyth County while benefitting from an improved budget.  

He notes future exhibitions will also give local patrons an opportunity to see works from NCMA, which houses what is known as “The People’s Collection.”

Neal Charnoff joined 88.5 WFDD as Morning Edition host in 2014. Raised in the Catskill region of upstate New York, he graduated from Sarah Lawrence College in 1983. Armed with a liberal arts degree, Neal was fully equipped to be a waiter. So he prolonged his arrested development bouncing around New York and L.A. until discovering that people enjoyed listening to his voice on the radio. After a few years doing overnight shifts at a local rock station, Neal spent most of his career at Vermont Public Radio. He began as host of a nightly jazz program, where he was proud to interview many of his idols, including Dave Brubeck and Sonny Rollins. Neal graduated to the news department, where he was the local host for NPR's All Things Considered for 14 years. In addition to news interviews and features, he originated and produced the Weekly Conversation On The Arts, as well as VPR Backstage, which profiled theater productions around the state. He contributed several stories to NPR, including coverage of a devastating ice storm. Neal now sees the value of that liberal arts degree, and approaches life with the knowledge that all subjects and all art forms are connected to each other. Neal and his wife Judy are enjoying exploring North Carolina and points south. They would both be happy to never experience a Vermont winter again.

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