As Associate Director of the Basic Program of Liberal Education for Adults, Jan Watson aims to ensure Graham School students are welcomed into a warm intellectual community.

Now in her 16th year at UChicago, Watson also directs the Graham School’s Study in Oxford travel programs and the Basic Program’s Spring Break in Greece. Her work on Graham’s events and other programming is part of what keeps bringing students back, year after year.

For over 25 years, Watson has worked as an arts administrator, production manager, and stage manager, touring internationally with dance companies, running music festivals, and organizing events for the City of Chicago, Ravinia Festival, Joffrey Ballet, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Chicago Humanities Festival, other arts organizations, and corporations. She is an avid traveler and enjoys baseball and opera.

Watson holds theater degrees from Florida State University and Illinois State University and is herself a graduate of the Basic Program. In her free time, she stretches her theater muscle by participating in an off-campus group called “Sunday School” which focuses on critical analysis of plays and opera scores.

She answered our questions about her interests and experiences:

Q: You hold bachelor's and master's degrees in theater and worked in the arts for many years. What drew you to adult education?
A: As a long-time subscriber to the New York Times, I often saw the Basic Program quarterly brochure stuffed in the Sunday paper. I saved it and hoped that someday I would have the time to sign up for the four-year certificate program, reading the great works of the Western canon. After I left the Joffrey Ballet in the early 2000s, I had that chance to study in the Basic Program. During my second year, the chair of the program asked me if I could come into the office to help her out for a few weeks. That opportunity turned into a part-time position that soon became full-time. I thought I would just stay until I finished the Basic Program, but I loved the work and saw my skills and ideas welcomed and valued. Here I am, 16 years later.

Q: How have your theater degrees helped you with the work you do today?
A: Any liberal arts degree sets you up for success in the workplace. Working in theater prepares you for problem-solving, meeting deadlines (that curtain is going up at 8 p.m., no matter what!), collaboration, openness, and comfort working in a diverse, quickly changing environment.
The pandemic had everyone talking about pivoting. In the performing arts, you pivot constantly, moving from theater to dance to opera and from show to show, working with different directors, choreographers, performers, and designers, and each situation requires you to immerse yourself into the life of that project. Theater trained me to work backward. If I know that the performance is on such-and-such a date and starts at such and such a time, I work backward to ensure we are ready to raise the curtain. This style of project management is applicable to almost any situation. Working on tours, I learned to always bring donuts to the load-in, to never lose your hotel room key, and to pack a suitcase quickly and efficiently.

Q: Why is it beneficial for adults to continue their education in the liberal arts?
A: Education in the liberal arts brings a lot of interest and happiness into your life. You never want to stop learning! The Graham School is a place to stay connected, satisfy curiosity, explore old and new ideas, and share in a community. Studying in the liberal arts enriches life experiences like travel. It helps you keep up with changes in the world and gives you the added benefit of being well prepared for cocktail and dinner conversations. I am much better at solving crossword puzzles since taking the Basic Program, and I think I am a better citizen and a better human for having a liberal arts background.

Q: What do you enjoy most about your role?
A: I have the pleasure of working with smart, capable people, both with my colleagues and our student body. Our students’ dedication to continuing education inspires me to keep reading, studying, and engaging in conversation. I also love my travel study programs with a particular affection for the Study in Oxford programs—I get dreamy just thinking about Oxford.