Cal State Long Beach arts professor Victoria Bryan took on an executive director position for the city last month after beating nearly 30 applicants from across the United States, Canada and Latin America for the job.
Bryan, 62, is now executive director of the Arts Council for the Long Beach Board of Directors. She has lived in Long Beach since 1985 and taught at CSULB since 2003. She started her new position in April.
“This new emphasis is very exciting to me personally, so when the job became available, I decided to apply for it,” said Bryan, who has also taught in the theatre and education departments. “Its potential is its biggest strength. I think we’re in a time of great change.”
The executive director of the Arts Council, which supports and promotes the local arts community, is in charge of the day-to-day management of the organization and works alongside the board of directors to implement the Arts Council’s strategic plan, which aims to foster creativity in Long Beach, Bryan said.
The Arts Council, which was established in 1976, receives 45 percent of its $800,000 annual budget from the city. The rest is raised through grants and other government sources.
Bryan said she believes she is suited for the position because she has worked with many different artists and understands the diversity of the art world in Long Beach.
“I look forward to the opportunity to build connections between our arts sector and our greater communities,” Bryan said. “In Southern California, we have an incredibly diverse network of artists and arts and cultural organizations.”
In 1978, Bryan co-founded and co-directed STOP-GAP, which provided a network of educational and therapeutic theatre programs throughout Southern California.
Bryan received her Ph.D. from the Drucker School of Management. She studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts, which led her to an extensive background in visual arts, consulting arts organizations, six years of educational television production in Iran and a year as the head of the prop department at the Abbey Theatre in Dublin.