Opera America, the national service organization for opera and a champion for American opera, has announced the selection of 14 participants from the United States, Canada and Europe for its 2016 Leadership Intensive program. One of them is Michelle Myers, manager of constituent relations at Opera Theatre of St. Louis.

These 14 "future industry leaders" were chosen through a competitive process that looked at the candidates’ potential for making significant contributions to the field of opera. Myers is considered one of the most promising professionals in the field. She's part of the program's fourth class. The program is sponsored by American Express.

With the others, Myers will join in professional development programs throughout the year, to include regular group coaching calls, webinars with opera executives and roundtable discussions at the organization's yearly conference, making this a comprehensive professional development experience.

Myers has been an actor, stage manager and administrator in her career. She works with OTSL's board of directors and oversees the 300-plus-member volunteer guild. Myers also coordinates strategic planning and works with endowment and planned giving donors. Myers received her B.A. in music business from Southern Illinois University and is a member of the 2016 class of Emerging Leaders at FOCUS St. Louis.

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