Miki Conn is an artist, storyteller, poet, writer and community organizer. Her African and Native American heritage inspired her interest in indigenous arts and multiculturalism. Her travels inspired her exploration of the myths, legends, arts and belief systems of many lands.

Miki is the retired, former executive director of the Hamilton Hill Arts Center, a multi-arts center located in the heart of the inner-city in Schenectady. While at the HHAC, Miki introduced the celebration of Juneteenth to the Capital Region and although now retired, she continues to organize the annual Capital Region Juneteenth Celebration held in Schenectady. She is also a founding member of the Capital Region Kwanzaa Coalition that plans an annual seven-day Kwanzaa celebration. She is a founding member of Black Dimensions in Art and also founded an annual drumming festival: “In Women’s Hands: The Beat of the Drum”, which served the Capital Region for seven years.

Miki teaches art to children and adults and offers workshops or classes in team building, creativity, writing and African spirituality. Miki’s art has been exhibited in Africa, Upstate New York, Long Island and Boston. Several of her essays are published in the anthology “Sacred Waters” and she edited and self-published “Integrating Delmar 1957, the Story of a Friendship”, authored by her mother, Margaret Cunningham and her mother’s friend, Arlen Westbrook. She published a book of poetry entitled “Out of My Mind: A Quirky Look at Life Through Poetry, a children’s book entitled “The Story of a House” and is currently working on a second children’s book, “Oshun’s Pumpkins”.

Her history includes her involvement in the civil rights movement in the 60’s, during her college years at Howard University and volunteer work in planning for the historic March on Washington in 1963. She is also an Awo in the African Ifa faith. The recipient of many organizational and community service awards, Miki continues to strive to strengthen and enrich her community.

Miki is the daughter of Dr. James Cunningham and Margaret Cunningham, ( both deceased), mother of four adult children, grandmother of four and great grandmother of one. Since retiring, her focus has been on completing personal writing projects and volunteering for the Hamilton Hill Arts Center.

A graduate of Bethlehem Central High School, Miki’s family integrated Delmar. Miki was the only black student there from 1957 when she began middle school to 1962 when she graduated from high school. This was time when the community did not welcome African Americans; her experiences there motivated her activism in the Civil Rights Movement.