March 19, 2007

LINCOLN UNIVERSITY AND THE BARNES FOUNDATION ESTABLISH HISTORIC ARTS PROGRAM FOR STUDENTS

LINCOLN UNIVERSITY, PA ~ Lincoln University and the Barnes Foundation have announced the creation of a collaborative bachelor’s degree program.  This innovative course of study will prepare students for careers in museum and collections studies, museum education and museum communications.

“We are pleased to develop this unique academic program with the Barnes Foundation,” said Dr. Ivory V. Nelson, president of Lincoln University.  “This collaborative effort provides a great opportunity for our students to pursue one of the nation’s dynamic careers.  In essence, this effort combines the legacies of two great institutions.”

Students who enroll in the program will earn a degree from Lincoln University and obtain firsthand experience in the various concentrations at the Barnes Foundation.  The program will be launched in the upcoming fall semester.

“As part of the Barnes Foundation’s efforts to fulfill our educational mission and to expand access to our educational programming, we are delighted to develop and participate in this arts program with Lincoln University,” commented Dr. Bernard C. Watson, president of the Board of Trustees of the Barnes Foundation.  “We hope it will enrich the lives of the students and contribute to greater diversity in the art education, and museum fields.” Dr. Watson added, “We would like to thank the Christian R. and Mary F. Lindback Foundation for their support on this groundbreaking collaboration.”

The academic collaboration is an exciting step forward and an appropriate evolution given the time-honored legacies of the two institutions and their association, which dates back to the 1940s.  Founded in 1854, Lincoln University is the first historically black institution of higher education, and its graduates include such luminaries as Thurgood Marshall, the first African American justice of the United States Supreme Court, and acclaimed poet and author Langston Hughes.  Lincoln University is nationally regarded for producing African Americans with undergraduate degrees in the physical sciences.

The Barnes Foundation was established by Albert C. Barnes in 1922 to "promote the advancement of education and the appreciation of the fine arts.”  It houses a world-renowned collection of artwork that includes paintings by Renoir, Cézanne, Picasso, Matisse, and Van Gogh.  The collection spans 4,000 years and includes Greek, Roman and Egyptian antiquities, Chinese paintings, African sculptures, retablos from New Mexico, Native American works and American decorative arts.

Lincoln University will enhance students’ appreciation for the arts when construction of the International Cultural Center (ICC) is completed.  To be built on the campus at a cost of $26 million, the ICC will feature classrooms and house an impressive collection of African art and works by well-known and aspiring artists.