Some Examples of Contributions To Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in Education

MFA SCHOLARSHIP INITIATIVE

In 2020, as the Graduate Director, I initiated and led the development of two annual scholarships worth $5,000 each. These scholarships were designed to promote equity and support candidates from historically underrepresented groups in higher education and the field of art.

STUDENT RETENTION AND SUCCESS INITIATIVES

In 2022-23, I worked with faculty to develop a pilot program to support students during their first year at a university. The program has received funding of $20,000 from the university's Division of Student Success. Its objectives are to increase understanding of effective student support strategies and examine the circumstances in which peers and faculty are most effective. As part of the program, peer mentors will provide academic support to students in individual studio or other introductory-level courses, or a combination of studio and class hours, during scheduled mentoring sessions. The goal of this peer-to-peer support is to enhance the academic experience through increased student interaction and engagement. The program will begin in Spring 2023.

PROGRAM BUILDING

As the Director of the Interdisciplinary Art and Social Practice program at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, I have led the development of socially engaged curriculum. This program offers students a range of seminar and project-based experiences to explore practices to create positive social impact. In 2020, I helped secure $50,000 in funding from a local civic partner to support engaging and innovative program that addresses pressing social issues through the lens of art and creativity. Learn more about The Victoria and Ron Milstein Fund for Social Practice.

LEADERSHIP IN THE HUMANITIES

I strongly believe that placing the humanities at the center of the curriculum is essential for promoting ethics, empathy, diversity, and inclusion. In 2018, I led and coordinated a successful proposal for a $10,000 Humanities Initiative Melon Grant, which supported five faculty members in redesigning their courses and implementing humanities-centered projects that engage with the public. In 2019, I also led a proposal with 3 faculty members and 4 students from Dance, Music, and Media Studies to receive $7,600 in funding for a project that explored the act of walking as a critical practice. Since 2020, I have secured almost $4,000 in funding to support faculty and students from various departments in participating in interdisciplinary projects. 

CURRICULAR ACTIVISM

I have developed several interdisciplinary courses that focus on promoting community engagement, environmental and cultural awareness, and collaborative problem solving. Art, Education, and Social Practice is a course that I co-created for first-year art students, which introduces various ways in which artists can be educators, engage with the public sphere, and empower people. Arts for Social Change examines critical pedagogy, self and social activism, and ethical approaches to community engagement. Research Methods in Social Practice brings together graduate and undergraduate students from across the College of Visual and Performing Arts (CVPA) and functions as a residency program with a seminar component. These courses are taught by faculty members from across the CVPA to ensure a diverse range of perspectives and teaching strategies.

COVID-19 RESPONSE: CONNECTING MFA ARTISTS DURING ISOLATING TIMES

In response to the COVID-19 cancellations of MFA thesis exhibitions in 2020, Tom Ashcraft (Professor of Art at Western Carolina University) and I initiated and led the curation and printing of a catalog featuring all the Spring 2020 graduating MFA students across the UNC system. Together, we assembled a team of nine people from across the state, including MFA Directors, poets, and designers, to publish the catalog.

We did this during a time of forced isolation to connect MFA artists from across the state. This was the first UNC-wide collective representation of MFA artists ever, and we were determined to make it a success despite the challenges posed by the pandemic.

ART AND PUBLIC LIFE

Beyond the classroom, I have collaborated with Adam Carlin to initiate and launch the Greensboro Project Space (GPS), an extension of the University that brings together our community through art and culture. As the advisor and co-creator of this space, I have worked to develop dynamic and collaborative public programming that is inclusive to all members of the community. This downtown space has quickly become a hub for cross-disciplinary research and engagement beyond UNCG

ADVOCATE FOR STUDENT VOICES

I see myself as an advocate for my students' voices and leadership opportunities. For the past 12 years, I have supervised The Coraddi, UNCG's student-run arts and literature magazine. In 2019, as the university's budget became unable to support the magazine, I took the initiative to create a dedicated course to ensure the publication's continuation. Through this course, students gain valuable professional experience in digital software, web publishing, event coordination, marketing and brand management, creative directing, public engagement, teamwork, and leadership. Coraddi provides an important platform for open, inclusive exchange among students.

SOCIAL JUSTICE WORK

In 2016, the Aycock Auditorium at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro was renamed to the UNCG Auditorium, as the original name honored Charles Aycock, a white supremacist and former North Carolina governor. In response to this renaming, I was commissioned by the Chancellor's Office to create an artwork. For this project, I collaborated with Nikki Silvestri, an African American ecologist from California, to write a script for a play called "Pruning Dis-ease." This script used the metaphor of tree pruning to explore issues of race and ecology and addressed the process and necessity of renaming and removing diseased branches and/or Confederate monuments in the South. The play was presented as a workshop on tree pruning, but was actually a thought-provoking exploration of these complex and important issues

CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE FIELD

In 2020, I created a publication called "Rules and Hints for Community Engaged Research." This full-color printed publication features 14 "rules" for community engaged research written by 14 leading practitioners in the field of social practice. Over 100 copies of this publication have been printed and distributed freely to students, teachers, organizers, artists, and activists across the country.

REMAKING OF STUDENT SPACES

In 2021, I worked with a group of students to renovate their student lounge in the Studio Arts Building. The students were unhappy with the neglected state of the lounge and wanted to improve it. I secured the resources needed for the renovation, such as new lighting, wall repair, furniture, and more. I also developed a class project around this renovation, teaching the students how to repaint, redesign, and refurbish the space. Through this project, I helped the students understand the power of organizing, working together towards a common goal, and caring for themselves and their community. As a result of these efforts, the student lounge is now a much-enjoyed space, and the well-being and morale of the students has improved

PUBLIC PROGRAMMING: OPEN ENGAGEMENT

In 2019, I co-organized Emergent Futures: State of the Field, Open Engagement with Pedro Lasch, Professor of Art at Duke University. Open Engagement (OE) is a yearly conference that brings together artists, activists, and scholars to discuss and explore socially engaged practice. OE has been a key forum for these practitioners, theorists, and activists for over a decade, and is held in a different city each year. For Emergent Futures, we focused on the concept of "Emergent Strategies," developed by adrienne maree brown, as a way to create a groundswell of social change. The conference, which took place at Duke, UNC Chapel Hill, and UNC Greensboro, brought together over 100 participants for three days of workshops and discussions. The programming highlighted the work of socially engaged artists, activists, students, scholars, community members, and organizations working in the region.

CONTINUALLY LEARNING

I am committed to ongoing learning and personal development. Recently, I completed four Ph.D. courses in Education Leadership and Cultural Foundations program. My research focused on issues of race, equity, mindfulness, democracy, community engagement, and media literacy, and has provided me with a deeper understanding of how to recognize and address racial, gender, and economic inequities within our institutions and develop a more responsive and relevant curriculum for students.