Graduate School
MIT

Undergraduate School
Northwestern University

Mentor
Carol Burns, Taylor Burns Architects and Rappaport Institute Advisory Board Member

Agency
City of Boston, Mayor’s Office for Arts and Culture

Supervisor
Kara Elliott-Ortega, Director

Description of Fellowship
Chelsea’s fellowship was with the Boston Mayor’s Office of Arts and Culture (MOAC), where she spent her summer conducting a cultural equity study to inform how the City supports Boston’s underrepresented artists and cultural organizations. Her study began by mapping and analyzing existing data on artists and arts organizations that have previously applied for MOAC’s programs and resources. After identifying gaps in representation in MOAC’s applicant pool, Chelsea continued the study by conducting interviews with over 20 key internal and external stakeholders. She then developed a report of her findings, which recommended various strategies and tactics to make MOAC’s resources more accessible. In addition, Chelsea developed equity-specific questions to help MOAC better evaluate grant applicants, and she also designed a survey in support of efforts to monitor and evaluate MOAC’s reach more effectively. In 2018 Chelse mentored Natalia Chavez last year and looks forward to being a mentor to other fellows.

“The Rappaport Fellowship gave me an invaluable opportunity to expand on my training as a city planner and learn first-hand what a career in public service could look like. The experience helped me to solidify my career goals of improving the livability of our communities and encouraging civic participation, and influenced my decision to pursue my current role as a community development planner for the Cape Cod Commission.” – Chelsea S. Bruck