Meet Our Board
Dr. Everett McCorvey
Dr. Everett McCorvey is Professor of Voice and the OperaLex Endowed Chair in Opera Studies at the University of Kentucky. He is the Director and Executive Producer of UK Opera Theatre, a program that is recognized by the Richard Tucker Foundation as one of the top 20 Recommended Opera Training Programs in the country. As a tenor soloist, he has enjoyed critical acclaim and has performed in many prestigious venues around the world, including the Kennedy Center, Radio City Music Hall, the Metropolitan Opera, and Italy’s Teatro Communale.
Dr. McCorvey established, directs, and tours nationally and internationally with the American Spiritual Ensemble and is in his 6th season as the Artistic Director of the National Chorale, a professional choral organization that presents an annual choral-orchestral series at Lincoln Center in New York.
Dr. Jeryl Cunningham-Fleming
Jeryl Cunningham-Fleming’s vocal artistry has been heard in more than ten countries and on four continents. Her versatile and vibrant voice, paired with her fervent advocacy of African American music, makes her a favored soloist for leading ensembles, including the Boys Choir of Harlem and the American Spiritual Ensemble, and prestigious venues, including the United Nations and Lincoln Center. Cunningham-Fleming is a regular soloist and Assistant Director with the American Spiritual Ensemble, which performs classic spirituals, opera, jazz, and Broadway tunes highlighting the black experience in concerts in the United States, Europe, and South America. Ms. Cunningham-Fleming received her bachelor's degree in vocal performance at Oakwood University. She obtained her master's degree in vocal performance at Mannes School of Music; and has completed a doctoral degree at the University of Kentucky.
Joshua Thompson
Joshua Thompson is a pianist, social musicologist, teaching artist, and producer. Known onstage as Sock Joplin, he is recognized on a national scale for his expertise on classical composers of African descent and the inherent cultural connectivity in the broader aesthetic of Black Arts movements.
Joshua received a Bachelor of Arts in sociology from DePauw University, Greencastle, Indiana. He was the 2020 Beckman Emerging Artist Fellow of the Arts Council of Indianapolis and a resident at the Africana Studies Center for Music and Society at the Berklee School of Music in Boston, as well as a performing/teaching resident at the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, WA. He currently serves as the first Musicologist in Residence for Classical Music Indy and is co-host of the award-winning podcast Melanated Moments in Classical Music.
George Brown
George Anthony Brown is a skilled developer, illustrator, designer, and photographer. Proficient in a wide range of visual and art services, he excels in the presentation of concepts to clients and stakeholders. He is a Senior Designer for Elevance Health., in Indianapolis.
George created BrownDesign, a freelance agency that offers his expert services as an art director, web developer, and promotional video production.
Leslie Nelson
Leslie Nelson is a retired music educator and arts advocate. She received bachelor's and master's degrees in Music Education with a piano principal from Butler University in Indianapolis. She taught General Music in the Indianapolis Public Schools (Junior High!!) for 25 years and served as the Magnet Program Director at Donnan Middle School for their Health and Wellness Program. Leslie is an active member of Sigma Alpha Iota, the International Music Fraternity for Women. She served in several province and national offices and is the recipient of the National Alumnae Leadership Award. She and her husband, Roger, are active in the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra Association.
Rev. Andrew Scanlan-Holmes
Andrew Scanlan-Holmes, a Methodist Minister from the United Kingdom, started his ministry at Roberts Park in Advent of 2013 and was appointed Senior Pastor in July 2014. Prior to this appointment, Andrew was on a period of study leave after serving four churches in the Newcastle upon Tyne area in the North East of England. He has been an accredited Methodist preacher for over 30 years. He gained his Doctor of Theology & Ministry from Durham University in the UK in 2013.
Andrew and his wife Carolyn live in the Williams Creek area of Indianapolis. Carolyn is the Senior Pastor at The Garden Community UMC.
Leatrice Damus
Born in River Rouge, Michigan, Leatrice’s life of community service and cultural arts participation began at the age of 4 when she was the featured singer in the opening of a weekly gospel radio program. Her family esteemed arts and education while also ensuring that Leatrice knew the importance of community service. Hers was a youth made richer through participation at church, Girl Scouts, Rainbow Girls, and hospital volunteering.
During her studies at The Detroit Conservatory of Music (1963-1967), Leatrice sang in competitions and with several performing arts groups, including The Detroit Civic Opera Co. After completing her studies in voice at the Detroit Conservatory of Music, Leatrice was recruited by American Airlines and became the first African American Stewardess for American from Michigan.
Leatrice moved from Chicago to Miami in 1972 with her husband, Dr. Al Damus, where she began cultivating a life of community engagement while balancing her career at Delta Airlines, and life as a dedicated mother. She has been a decades-long member of Plymouth Congregational Church, working with youth groups and the community outreach board, as well as having served as PTA president and on the Superintendent’s Magnet Advisory Board for Dade County Public Schools.
Her commitment to cultural and educational groups includes the Young Patronesses of the Opera (YPO), where she serves on the board of governors,
The Greater Miami (FL) Chapter of the Links, Incorporated, Florida Grand Opera, Opera Volunteers International, Opera America, Funding Arts Network (FAN, founding member), The American Red Cross Ball Committee, the Fairchild Tropical Botanic Gardens Gala Committee, Friend of the Young Musician’s Camp (UM), and The Advisory counsel for The Girl Scouts of Tropical South Florida. She is also a friend and supporter of museums, human Interest, and women’s interest groups on local and national levels.
ABOUT MORNING BROWN, INC.
Morning Brown, Inc., is organized exclusively for charitable and educational purposes, including introducing and exposing economically and ethnically diverse and multigenerational audiences to opera and classical music through live and recorded performances in the context of a wide array of musical genres. Morning Brown, Inc., is an exempt organization as described in Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.
Morning Brown, Inc. strives to provide communication, digital resources, and programs accessible to everyone. Communication is available by voice, text, email, and video conference. Digital resources in the form of our program companion curriculum and our website are available for download and are designed for multi-abled learners and users. Our performance partners (schools, performing arts organizations, and community centers) are selected based on their ability to provide a safe, accessible experience for all participants and attendees.
Morning Brown, Inc., is grateful for the support of Indy Arts Council and the City of Indianapolis and the National Endowment for the Arts that make programming and new works possible, furthering our mission.
For questions or more information, please contact Janet Jarriel, program administrator: phone/text: (404) 663-4135 or email: janet@morningbrown.org.
