New Associate Director for Community Affairs and Campus Engagement Appointed

Abria Smith has been appointed associate director for community affairs and campus engagement in the President’s Office of Education Outreach at Berklee College of Music. Smith will be the liaison between the college and city agencies that share Berklee’s commitment to cultural, artistic, and educational development, including the mayor of Boston’s Office of Arts, Tourism and Special Events and the Boston Parks and Recreation Department.

Smith will also assist the vice president for real estate and serve as co-chair of the Neighborhood Improvement Committee, which maintains and establishes relationships with property-owners, businesses, resident associations, and organizations that abut the campus.

Residents might already be aware of Smith’s reach into Boston area neighborhoods. Her office produces the free Tito Puente Latin Music Series, Swingin’ in the Fens, and Jazz at the Fort concerts in Roxbury, the South End, the Fenway, East Boston, and Jamaica Plain.

Smith was born and raised in Boston, and has a bachelor of music degree from Berklee and a master’s of education from Cambridge College. She is a singer, songwriter, performer, and recording artist. She has written plays that have become staged productions, acted in theater and films, and published a book of poetry. Her most recent work, a book of poetry, is Someday Soup.