STACIA BRYAN and Andrea King have been appointed to the business development department of the National Cultural Foundation (NCF).

The major objective of the department is to equip artists with the tools and framework [legally and financially] to exploit the economic benefits from the various cultural industries.

A past student of Queen's College, Stacia Bryan holds a Master's in cultural industries management from the University of Greenwich, England. She also has a Bachelor of Arts degree in history from the University of the West Indies (UWI), Cave Hill and an Associate Degree in theatre arts from the Barbados Community College.

From an early age Bryan was an active artist, competing in the Junior Calypso Monarch competition under the stage name Sta-C-B.

At Queen's College she continued to develop her talents in drama and song writing. More recently, she was reintroduced to the Barbadian audience in Praise Song For Bruce, produced by the Faculty of Humanities and Education, UWI, and the loving character Maidene in the 2003 production of Laff-It-Off.

To date, her roles in creative productions have spanned both on and off stage as an actress, singer, writer, stage manager and event producer.

Andrea King has been a journalist, specialising in writing on entertainment and culture since 1990, at both The Advocate, and the Nation Publishing Company. She has received several accolades during that time, including two Barbados Association Of Journalists Awards for Best Researched And Written Cultural Articles, and The Barbados Music Awards Entertainment Journalist Of The Year. She is also a nominee for the 2008 Barbados Music Awards.

King has covered each CARIFESTA since 1996; Carnival in Trinidad, numerous festivals in the Caribbean, and most of the major cultural events in Barbados. She possesses a wide knowledge about the cultural industries in Barbados.

It was her recognition of the potential for economic development of the creative sector that inspired her to study for the Master's in arts management from City University of London. This training has now fully equipped this Combermere old scholar to assume her duties as business development officer with the National Cultural Foundation.

Both Bryan and King bring a wealth of talent to the NCF where they will be working closely with the artistic and cultural community in the hope to make a more significant impact on our budding creative sector. (PR)