by Lianne Coble-Dispensa, with Mary Hughes

In a contract negotiation year, the members of the Metropolitan Opera Chorus Committee are usually up to their necks in proposal brainstorming, AGMA shop meetings, and hours of getting up-close-and-personal with our CBAs (collective bargaining agreement) and MOAs (memorandum of agreement). However, this is no ordinary negotiation year, as the artists of the Met have been furloughed since March 12th, 2020 due to the global pandemic. So in the midst of long-term unemployment, some committee members have been searching for jobs, while others have gone back to school for free, thanks to the Union Plus program!

For those that might be unaware of this benefit, AGMA members have access to the incredible Union Plus Free College program. This program partners with Eastern Gateway Community College in Steubenville, OH to offer ten 2-year associate degree programs and two certificate programs, free of charge, to union members looking to expand their skill set or broaden their educational background. Additionally, Union Plus offers 4-year degree programs, also entirely online, available through Central State University in Wilberforce, OH. If you’re curious about this opportunity, check out www.unionplus.org. Then, read on to hear about the members of the Metropolitan Opera Chorus Committee who will be juggling term papers and homework assignments while they work with other Met AGMA artists to negotiate a fair, equitable contract and a safe working environment for all. 

Note: This article was originally featured in the Winter 2021 AGMAzine, the official newsletter of the American Guild of Musical Artists (AGMA). You may read the whole newsletter here.

Lianne Coble-Dispensa, soprano

A full-time member of the Met Chorus for 6 years

Chorus Committee member; Writer/Editor-in-Chief for the Met Artists newsletter and MetChorusArtists.com.

I still technically have one of the best jobs in the classical vocal industry. It’s the one full-time opera position with what used to be the greatest job security: I’m a member of the Metropolitan Opera Chorus. However, when the Met closed its doors due to the pandemic, I had a “come to Jesus” moment concerning what the next few years could look like. The future of the performing arts industry is murky at best, with a slow roll-out of the vaccine coupled with a new, more virulent strain of the virus potentially delaying our hoped-for decline in new cases. I looked at my short-term options and thought that the best choice during an extended period of unemployment was to make myself more employable elsewhere, should a career change become necessary.

A few Met Chorus colleagues had already started associate degrees through the Union Plus program, which I knew existed, but had never seriously considered using. (After all, I already had a job!) I’d always been interested in law and at different points in my career, toyed with the idea of going to law school. Considering law school requires 3 years of full-time commitment (or 4 years part-time) and a whole lot of money, I took the next-best path and enrolled in an associate degree program through Union Plus to become a paralegal. I’m in the middle of my second semester and have thoroughly enjoyed this introduction to the world of legal writing and practice. 

The Union Plus program is an incredible opportunity to learn new things, expand one’s skill set, and forge a new career path, all for free, and all entirely online. It’s a great choice for unemployed members of the performing arts industry stuck at home with far too much time on their hands, but it’s also an incredible resource for anyone in the greater AFL-CIO union family who is looking to continue their education and take charge of their future. 

(Update: Since publication of this article, Lianne has changed her major to an AAB in Business Management with a Data Science focus.

Mary Hughes, mezzo-soprano

A full-time member of the Met Chorus for 15 years

Chorus Committee member; Women’s chorus delegate

Life during this pandemic has been about as unpredictable and uncertain as it could be for my husband and I and our 3 young children. Our world changed on a dime and all of the sudden I was furloughed and the whole family contracted COVID-19.

Somewhere along the way I started to apply for jobs, thinking that my delegate work with the Met Chorus Negotiating Committee could open some doors in customer service or administrative work. I joined the millions of newly-unemployed people who were applying to the same jobs in industries that I have not been a part of since accepting a full-time position at the Met 15 years ago. It was demoralizing, but I didn’t want to give up. I was homeschooling 3 kids, so why not have something that I could do while they were doing their version of school?

I’d always been interested in working as a paralegal, but life and music took me elsewhere. I’d known about the free college benefits through AGMA and Union Plus but had not given the program much thought until I started talking about it more with colleagues. When I looked again in May 2020, I realized that for free, I could become a certified paralegal. This is an industry that is projected to grow in the years ahead and encompasses my interests of working in Immigration Law. I’m so glad that I took the plunge! I have always wondered what else I could do to supplement my income, and I have chosen a field which is challenging and interesting. 

There’s nothing as exciting as singing at the Met, but the opportunity to broaden my skills was too good to pass up, and the fact that it’s a free benefit for all of us is golden.

Karen Dixon, soprano

A full-time member of the Met Chorus for 20 years

Chorus Committee member; dancer delegate

 The pandemic has shown me the tremendous vulnerability of the performing arts industry. I learned about the free college benefit through AGMA and Union Plus and decided now would be a good time to take advantage of it.

I chose to study Professional Office Management for several reasons. I have done office work for my husband's retail store for many years but have not had any "training" to do it. This degree will enhance the real-life experience I already have to benefit our store and offer more skills if I am faced with looking for other work opportunities.

The opportunities are endless in the field of Office Management, as every form of work needs office personnel to support and maintain operations. I am deeply grateful that my union offers this incredible opportunity for its members to grow and enhance skills to benefit them and their families, whether or not there are difficult times like these.

(Editor’s Note: The retail store to which Karen referred is The Shoe Tree, located on the Upper West Side of Manhattan near the Cathedral of St. John the Divine. If you need shoes for your kiddos or for yourself, The Shoe Tree has a fantastic selection and a friendly Met face at the register!)

Ned Hanlon, bass

A full-time member of the Met Chorus for 7 years

Chorus Committee chair; Met AGMA Committee chair

Last March the performing arts world exploded, and we are still just barely beginning to pick up the pieces. Artists around the country were confronted with the reality that their industry was shut down and would be for the foreseeable future. It was in this context that I started looking around for things to do while there was no way for me to work. Improving and making myself more well-rounded through education seemed a natural fit.  

Happily, I had heard about the Union Plus Free College Benefit and I jumped at the chance. Given my work with our AGMA negotiating committee at the Met, I thought that the Management Degree with a Labor Focus was a natural fit that could put me in a place to be more of an asset to my colleagues when we did finally return to work.

Now I’m 29 credits in and very glad I pursued the degree. I’m taking Intro to Management so I’ll know how the bad guys think (Just kidding! Well, kind of.) and Contract Administration, which will serve me as a singer and as a union representative.  The degree has helped give me purpose and direction during this rudderless and uncertain time. I am greatly appreciative of the Free College Benefit for helping me to take lemons and turn them into, if not lemonade, then at least better-tasting organic lemons!

Note: The authors would like to take this opportunity to publicly congratulate Ned for winning an award sponsored by the Union Plus Holiday Giveback Campaign. 100 exemplary union leaders, nominated by friends and union colleagues, were chosen out of a pool of over 1,000 worthy applicants. If you see Ned during a pandemic Zoom meeting, be sure to congratulate him on a job well done!