Zenetta S. Drew Bio

Zenetta S. Drew has been Executive Director of Dallas Black Dance Theatre since 1987. During her tenure, Dallas Black Dance Theatre has grown from an annual operating budget of $175,000 to over $4.9 million and has also grown from a community-based organization to a fully professional dance company. Annual services have grown from 30 to over 600 including national and international venues and total audience growth has increased from 20,000 to over 150,000. Under her administrative leadership, the company has performed on some of the world’s most prestigious stages including the Lincoln Center, the Kennedy Center, and the Olympics as well as performances for such luminaries as Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II and President Nelson Mandela.

Ms. Drew is the first African American female to receive a BBA in Accounting from Texas A&M University-Commerce and she is the first African American female to be named a Distinguished Alumna in 2016. She holds a Management Certificate in Non-Profit Leadership from Brookhaven College, and is a graduate of the National Arts Strategies Executive Program through Harvard Business School (2016) and University of Michigan, Ross School of Business (2017). She is a graduate of Leadership Arts – 1989, Leadership Dallas – 1991, Leadership Women: Texas – 2010, Leadership Women: International (India) – 2013, and Leadership Women: Encore – 2022. She is also a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.

Ms. Drew received the 2016 Obelisk Award for Outstanding Leadership Arts Alumnus from the Business Council for the Arts, the 2018 Dallas Historical Society Award for Arts Leadership, and the 2021 Dance/USA’s Ernie Award. She has served on more than 40 arts organization boards/advisory boards/committees that include Americans for the Arts, Board Treasurer for the Cultural Data Project, and Vice-Chair of the Dallas Arts District.

Ms. Drew has served on more than 40 arts organization boards/advisory boards/committees that include Americans for the Arts, the Dallas Museum of Art, Dallas Women’s Foundation, Dallas Coalition for the Arts, Board Treasurer for the Cultural Data Project, Vice-Chair of the Dallas Arts District and was a founding board member of Southwest Black Arts Festival Ms. Drew was also an Adjunct Professor in SMU’s M.A./M.B.A. Arts Management Program teaching Strategic Planning in the Arts.

Ms. Drew works with a 50-member Board of Directors, whose primary responsibilities are fundraising and fiduciary oversight.