Emily L. Waters

Emily L. Waters serves as a senior program associate in the Arts and Culture program at The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Ms. Waters began her career as a professional ballet dancer, dancing with Philadelphia Ballet (formerly Pennsylvania Ballet) and the Royal Danish Ballet. During her ten-year dance career, she performed works by a range of choreographers and performed in venues throughout the US and Europe. After transitioning from a career as a performing artist to arts administration, she was awarded a BAM Professional Development Program Fellowship through the DeVos Institute. Prior to the Foundation, Ms. Waters worked at American Ballet Theatre in the development and executive offices. Emily holds a BA in performing arts through the Liberal Education for Arts Professionals (LEAP) Program at St. Mary's College of California, received an MS degree in nonprofit management from Columbia University, and is a trustee of Collage Dance Collective.