Columbus dancer and choreographer Susan Van Pelt Petry, professor and chair of the Department of Dance at Ohio State, will receive the $10,000 fellowship named in memory of former GCAC President Raymond J. Hanley,according to the Greater Columbus Arts Council and the Columbus Arts Endowment.

An anonymous panel of judges, along with the trustees of the Columbus Arts Endowment, chose Petry as the fifth recipient of the Raymond J. Hanley Fellowship, an award for an individual artist who has demonstrated an high level of achievement while working for at least five years in the visual arts, performing arts, literary arts or any other arts discipline. Fellowship money is awarded to the recipient without restriction, so the artist can use it to further his or her career as needed. The fellowship is administered by GCAC and supported through the Hanley Arts Fund of the Columbus Arts Endowment, created upon Hanley’s death in 2006.

"This award came out of the blue and is such an honor," said Petry. "Ray Hanley was a mentor to me and to have this come full circle further validates the value and power of working in the arts and in particular the extraordinary potential of dance."

The award will be presented at a private reception September 17, 2013 at the YWCA Ballroom.

For more information see the GCAC release.