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Erika Atkins

@25percentcool

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New Yorker.
Leader.
Teacher.
Artist.

POSTS STORIES REELS TAGGED

Celebrated the big 4-0 with my favs for a weekend full of mountain views, baby animals, and *lots* of Dolly! This is 40 🎈✨️
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#dollywood #dollyparton #smokeymountains #tennessee #thisis40

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No caption necessary. Happy birthday @fortchy86 !

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A strategic plan can be visionary, highly specific, or somewhere in between. The right format is the one that helps your organization move forward. Watch the full Benvenuti Arts Conversation with Erika Atkins on our YouTube channel via the link in the bio to learn more and sign up for our monthly newsletter to join next BA Conversations live.

#artsmanagement #nonprofitleadership #artsadministration #artsnonprofit #strategicplanning

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A message from Executive Director, Erika Atkins, on her last day. ❤️ 🎶

“Dear Bloomingdale Community,

After nearly six years here, today is my last day as Executive Director of Bloomingdale School of Music. However, it is not my last day as a part of this community.

I have watched you all care for each other through difficult times, including a pandemic that tested every one of us, and through the years since as we found our way back to each other and figured out what this community looks like now.

I have seen it in the parent who drives forty minutes each way so her son can keep his cello lesson. I have seen it in the faculty member who has given a student everything to help them prepare for an audition that matters to no one but that student. I have seen it in the donors who give, not because they get naming rights, but because they believe a five-year-old deserves to sing in a room full of people who take her seriously. That is Bloomingdale. That is who you are.
Leading this organization has been one of the greatest honors of my life, and I mean that completely. I have been profoundly shaped by my own experience in music and the arts, from childhood and beyond, and I believe, down to my bones, that what this community has built over sixty years is worth everything we can give it, so that it is still here, still doing this work, sixty years from now.

That future depends on all of us. If you’re able, please consider a gift toward that next sixty years. Every gift, no matter the size, is a way of saying this place is worth keeping.

I am so excited for this community to get to know Rachel Black when she begins on July 20. I have known her for years and could not be prouder to hand this role to her. I know she will continue to build great things here at Bloomingdale and beyond. She brings the kind of care this place deserves. I step away knowing that between Rachel, our incredible leadership team, our faculty, and our board, this community is in good hands.

Thank you for six years I will never stop being grateful for.

All my best, and don’t forget to practice.

Erika”

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As @openingactny takes its final bow today, I am predictably full of feelings.

It’s been one of the greatest honors of my life to help build this organization, to advance the mission of arts equity, and to learn from these incredible young people for over a decade.

Frankly, it sucks when any nonprofit has to close, especially one that has done as much good as this one. I’ve seen that life-changing impact first-hand and am so grateful to have been a part of it.

I’m on to my next act, but the values and mission of @openingactny will always be a part of me. Thanks to everyone in these photos and everyone not pictured who have been on this journey with me. I’m excited to see what’s next…for all of us!

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This week, we’re celebrating the heart of Bloomingdale: our Teaching Artists. 💛

Their artistry, care, creativity, and dedication shape the lives of our students every day. From first notes to final performances, they help our community grow with confidence, curiosity, and joy.

To our incredible BSM faculty: thank you for the music you share, the students you inspire, and the lasting impact you make.

Now we want to hear from you! Comment below with a favorite BSM teacher who made a difference in your life, your child’s life, or your musical journey over the years. Let’s show them some love. 🎶

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BA Conversations return this June! This time, we will have a discussion with Erika Atkins, arts administration consultant, Founder of Atkins Impact Strategy, and Executive Director of Bloomingdale School of Music (BSM).

Erika and Benvenuti Arts team have been working together on BSM fundraising efforts for the past six years. Most recently, Erika also joined the BA team for a strategic planning session for the Pittsburgh Center for Arts & Media.

In a live interview with Alicia Olivo, BA’s Consultant for Special Projects, Erika will share her insights on strategic planning best practice, drawing on over a decade of experience leading and consulting arts organizations across the country.

The interview will be followed by a Q&A session, so you can ask your questions and engage in the conversation.

Register via the link in bio to receive an invite✉️

#artsmanagement #artsconsulting #artsleadership #strategicplanning

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Spring finally showed up 🌷✈️✨️
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#wanderlust #dogsofinstagram #traveloften #springvibes #springhassprung

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This April, Benvenuti Arts and Pittsburgh Center for Arts & Media kicked off a strategic planning process for the next few years of PCA&M’s sustainable operations and impactful service to the Pittsburgh community.

Nathan Bussard, Benvenuti Arts Associate Director of Consulting Services, together with Erika Atkins, Executive Director of Bloomingdale School of Music and Founder of Atkins Impact Strategy, conducted a series of exercises for PCA&M staff members to lay the groundwork for further planning.

#pittsburghart

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Every year in Ny we’d almost burn our apartment down.

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We’re proud to share that our Executive Director, Erika Atkins, was honored at @fordhamuniversity ’s 20th Anniversary Global Diversity & Inclusion Banquet on November 4.

The celebration, themed “Rising Together,” brought together students, alumni, and community leaders to lift up work in belonging, inclusion, and resilience. Erika was recognized alongside past keynote speakers whose leadership has shaped this event’s twenty-year legacy.

Congratulations, Erika — and thank you for championing access, equity, and community through your work at Bloomingdale.

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