Featured image for post: Barton’s Friends of Visual Arts Welcomes SECCA Executive Director William J. Carpenter on April 11

Barton’s Friends of Visual Arts Welcomes SECCA Executive Director William J. Carpenter on April 11

WILSON, N.C. — March 31, 2023 — The Barton Art Galleries at Barton College is excited to host the Friends of
Visual Arts Spring Lecture featuring William J. Carpenter, executive director of the Southeastern Center for
Contemporary Art (SECCA) in Winston-Salem. His lecture will focus on the center’s recent exhibitions and
community initiatives, as well as the center’s role in supporting contemporary art in the Southeast and beyond. The
event will be held on Tuesday, April 11, at 6 p.m., in the Barton Art Galleries in Case Art Building on campus.

This event is open to the public at no charge, and the community is invited to attend. For additional information,
please contact the Barton Art Galleries at artgalleries@barton.edu or call 252-399-6476.

About the Speaker —
Carpenter was appointed as executive director of SECCA in 2019. He leads SECCA in its mission to “engage our
communities by creating an inclusive, revelatory, and educational experiences with outstanding contemporary art.”
Prior to this appointment, he served as an English professor and director of the High Point University Writing
Program. He also served as chair of the English Department and was the founding director of the High Point
University First-Year Program, a common experience program consisting of shared summer reading, living-
learning communities, and events to promote lifelong learning. Carpenter also was the co-chair/lead writer of High
Point University’s Quality Enhancement Program.
Earlier in his professional career, Carpenter served as director of the University Writing Program and then chair of
the English Department at the University of Illinois, Springfield. He completed his Bachelor of Arts degree in
English from The College of New Jersey, followed by a Master of Arts degree in English from Kansas State
University, and a Ph.D. in English from the University of Kansas.

About SECCA — 
The Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art (SECCA) in Winston-Salem is a creative leader of the arts in the
Southeast, a museum boldly giving artists of the region a platform for visibility while connecting local communities
with the international world of contemporary art. Located at 750 Marguerite Drive, the museum is open Tuesday
through Sunday. For hours, please visit secca.org. SECCA is an affiliate of the North Carolina Museum of Art, a
division of the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources. SECCA receives operational funding from the Arts Council
of Winston-Salem and Forsyth County. Additional funding is provided by the James G. Hanes Memorial Fund.

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