Chad Locklear, the Givens Performing Arts Center’s marketing director at UNC Pembroke, was selected to participate in South Art's Emerging Leaders of Color inaugural cohort. ELC is an executive-level professional development initiative that will help arts professionals to build their skills, support their careers and advocate for the cultural interests of the communities they represent and serve.

“I am honored to be selected for this opportunity to collaborate with a diverse cohort of emerging arts leaders from throughout the South," Locklear said. "I am looking forward to learning ways to advance the arts at GPAC, UNCP and our community.”

Locklear is responsible for various duties at GPAC, including advertising, sponsorships, social media, graphic design, and marketing strategy. He is currently pursuing a master's in digital communication at UNC-Chapel Hill.

“I have known Chad professionally for nearly four years, and I have come to appreciate him as a remarkable advocate for media specialists of color,” said James Bass, executive director of GPAC. “He is heavily involved in the promotion of culture in his home county.”

Locklear was one of 12 arts professionals chosen to participate in sessions designed to prepare participants for leadership positions in the arts. The cohort will engage in a curriculum that addresses current issues and developmental topics such as leadership styles, team building, designing inclusive systems and cultural democracy.

According to the South Arts website, the ELC program is modeled after—and offered in collaboration with—the Western States Arts Federation Emerging Leaders of Color program, which has had a successful track record for more than 10 years.