By Lesley Whitaker

Andrea Van de Kamp, former chairperson of Sotheby’s West Coast Art Auction House and leader of fundraising for the Walt Disney Concert Hall, stressed at the Women’s History Month Assembly Monday the importance of choosing a self-gratifying career and doing non-profit work. 

She spoke about her experiences in the corporate, non-profit, education and art worlds and gave college advice. 

She was the first woman hired by Dartmouth College at 28 years old. 

She enjoyed working with her male colleagues and if “things ever got racy, I’d say, ‘careful guys, I’ll write a book, and you don’t want to be in it,’” she joked.

Her boss Edward T. Chamberlain told her that though she was qualified, she would never reach the top of the admissions office.  

She was executive director of CORO, a non-profit organization that provided internships for exposure to public affairs, including internships at the Los Angeles Police Department and the Los Angeles Times. 

She also became the second woman chairperson of the Music Center of Los Angeles County and worked in fundraising, chairing the Development Committee to raise funds to build the $270 million Walt Disney Concert Hall, which opened in 2003.

“It is most important that you love what you do,” she said.