The Rainey Institute has been serving Greater Cleveland youth since 1904. The nonprofit community arts center serves as a place for children of all ages to discover and develop their artistic talents, from singing to playing instruments to acting to visual arts.  The institute has two locations, one in Hough and the other in the Clark-Fulton neighborhood.

In July, the Rainey Institute named Marcella J. Brown its new executive director. She is only the fourth person to hold this role in the organization’s history. Brown succeeds Jennifer Harris, who stepped down from the role.

Signal Cleveland had the opportunity to catch up with Brown to find out how she came to this position and what her goals are for the Rainey Institute.

Good morning, thank you for taking the time to speak with me. Can you tell our readers a little bit about yourself?

I grew up in the Lee-Harvard area, I attended John Marshall High School. I played volleyball, I was a high stepper, I was on student council as well.

I love Cleveland. I think it’s a really exciting time to live in the city, so I’m here for now.

What were you doing prior to assuming the role as executive director at the Rainey Institute?

My background is in nonprofit management. For me, community is the essence of life and our experience. Prior to coming to Rainey, I was the vice president of development and communications for Lutheran Metropolitan Ministry (LMM). I was responsible for raising money, public relations and other external advancement-facing tasks for the agency. Prior to being on the staff, I was a board member at LMM for 13 years.

Do you have any background in the arts?

It’s funny, when I interviewed for this position, that was a concern for me because I have no formal training in the arts as they are presented here at Rainey. Life experiences have definitely given me exposure to the arts throughout my life. I went to The Ohio State University, where I studied public affairs, journalism and Spanish, which pretty much is language arts. 

About 10 years ago, my husband and father of my children passed away. He was the victim of a homicide. It was difficult for me to get back up and go to work … it was a very heavy experience, dealing with grief. It kind of feels like you’re stuck in quicksand and you’re trying to pull yourself out of it. The more you try to escape, the more you get drawn back into it.

One of the first things that I did after he passed was get into art. I did some arts classes and experiences with my children. I enrolled in acting classes because I was struggling with returning to an organization where I was the public face in the midst of everything that was going on in my personal life. There is research that shows that a lot of executives who struggle with public speaking take acting classes to elevate their confidence and be more comfortable with public engagement. Those classes helped me tremendously to prepare myself mentally and emotionally to be back in the public spotlight.

I’m very sorry to hear about your loss. It’s beautiful to see how your family has been able to find light in a time of darkness. Can you speak to what the arts have meant to your children since dealing with such a difficult situation?

The arts were a huge part of their healing journey.  That’s how they became Rainey kids. They started doing Rainey summer camps and Saturday programming, which was my first time interfacing with the organization. My daughters play instruments now, and they are a part of the theater program at their school.

What started as a way for us to embrace grief in a healthy way has continued to blossom into such a central part of our lives. I love it.

As you step into this leadership role at the Rainey Institute, can you discuss the status of where you see things now and where you would like to see the organization go?

It’s intimidating to come into an organization that has over 120 years of history. Rainey is so beloved by so many people. When I shared with family, friends and the community that I was taking the role on, so many told me that they were Rainey kids. It definitely has a presence in Greater Cleveland.

Coming into a position where there are not so many fires to put out immediately really allows me to work with the staff and board to think big. I’ve told them that we are not taking our foot off the gas pedal, we are going to press down. 

We are looking at Rainey’s main areas of programming: arts, drama, music, vocal, theater and culinary arts, and looking to layer those categories with entrepreneurship. How are we preparing young people who come through these doors to take their talents and make money off of them? Which we should. It’s important that we teach them how to leverage their talent and position themselves for success.

We also have to acknowledge that the definition of art is changing. The way we activate art is changing. Now we have digital art, media art and aesthetic art.… We want to occupy those spaces too. This year we are adding a class for podcasting and maybe even exploring hairstyling and cosmetology, which is an art, especially in the Black community.

I would like to make this space intergenerational as well. Our programming right now caps for young people at junior high. That’s something I am looking forward to addressing to see what we can do there.

What are some of the methods the institute uses to connect with the community?

I think because Rainey has been so devoted to having quality programming, sometimes the need to leverage community relationships and anchor the product of Rainey into the larger landscape can be forgotten. With my background in public relations, I’m looking to figure out how we position our kids and program participants to be known throughout the city and to be called upon. When decisions are being made about art and youth, we want to be at the table.

As programming is set to begin next month, is there anything special that the community can look forward to?

We still have a few spots at both of our locations for anyone looking to register. As a parent, you worry what your kids are gonna do after school. How can we engage them in a way that is meaningful but also provide them with activities that they actually want to do? 

The wonderful thing about Rainey is that it’s pure fun. If you have a young person who is into theater or loves to put on performances at home … bring them to Rainey. There is a home for them here.

In May of next year, we will have a big production where all of our students will have the ability to demonstrate what they’ve learned over the eight-month period. It’s an event that the students and parents really love. At the end of the day, this is an art-focused learning center with the goal of nurturing growth and development in young people.