EDI News
Message from CVPA EDI Committee with Trans Student Support Statement
Trans women are women, trans men are men. As part of CVPA’s commitment to inclusion, the members of the CVPA Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Committee are pledged to making space for and expanding our understanding of identity in the arts so that all are welcome and visible. We stand in solidarity with our LGBTQ+ and trans community and acknowledge, respect, and celebrate the differences and commonalities in our spaces and classrooms. In support of our trans students and colleagues, we recommit to co-creating a safe space for education, and to healing ourselves and each other alongside friends, allies, and family in a culture where each person feels seen, heard, and supported.
- https://racialequity.uncg.edu/lgbtq-education-and-research-network/
- https://intercultural.uncg.edu/transgender-and-non-binary-resource-toolkit
MESSAGE FROM DEAN BRUCE D. MCCLUNG
April 20, 2021 Dear CVPA Colleagues, Students and Families, and Alumni: I am heartened by the guilty verdict in the murder trial of Derek Chauvin. Justice has been served in this case, and the police officer who swore an oath to protect has been held accountable for the senseless death … read more.
Curriculum Development Report
Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in the curriculum and courses of study within the School:
- Faculty in the Art History area put forward revisions to the three 100-level survey courses, changing their structure from the traditional “Western” and “Non-western” art histories to a sequence of 3 “Global Art Histories” courses that decenter Euro-american whiteness and present a global and intercultural art history from prehistory to the contemporary.
Simultaneously, new Art History courses were proposed and approved at the 300 level, including ARH 346 Art in the Global 19th Century, ARH 348 Native Arts of North America, ARH 349 Art & Politics of the U.S, and ARH 359 Art and/as Social Justice. These courses greatly expand the canon of artworks students encounter in the program, through the fuller integration of diverse cultural traditions and a greater focus on issues and practices most relevant to contemporary practitioners from under-represented communities within the US.
Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in the curriculum and courses of study within the School:
- The School of Dance has a long-standing practice of annual curricula review that includes assessing issues of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion. An example of this commitment is the implementation of Assistant Professor Maurice Watson’s progressive Jazz Dance course sequence based on his 2019 curricular research exploring African American influences in Jazz Dance from 1920 to the present.
DCE 116 Jazz Dance I “Decolonizing: What is Jazz Dance”
This course recontextualizes dancers’ previous experience with Jazz Dance to focus on the social, political, and community aspects of Jazz Dance origins.
DCE 216 Jazz Dance II “Concert Dance: For the Cool in You”
The course explores how European influences were infused into the Africanist roots of Jazz Dance.
DCE 316 Jazz Dance III “Commercial Jazz: Everything Pop Culture”
This culminating course in the Jazz Dance curriculum encompasses the evolution of Jazz Dance and the various dance styles and forms that have shaped and shifted Pop Culture.
Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in the curriculum and courses of study within the School:
- Of the 44 proposals reviewed by the UCC, most of these were related to EDI. Course titles and descriptions were updated to reflect accurately the course content.
- Music Theory chose an artist from an underrepresented group to feature in class content across all courses. This year it was Esperanza Spaulding.
- Music Theory opted not to use a theory textbook because close to 98% of excerpts were from White male composers. Instead, they’ve used other sources to find examples that reflect more inclusive representation to teach theory concepts.
- On January 27, 2021, a Black student panel convened and presented to the faculty on how they have experienced our current curriculum. Their presentation focused on three areas of concern: Microaggressions, Recruitment, and Curriculum. Structured faculty discussion followed in subsequent meetings.
Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in the curriculum and courses of study within the School:
- Starting Fall 2020, the School of Theatre Curriculum Committee renamed several courses intentionally, adjusting the curriculum to reflect a more inclusive and expansive understanding of theatre pedagogies, philosophies, and practices. These adjustments will be ongoing as the School continues to work on decentering European ideologies and decolonizing the curriculum.
- Additional foundation MAC courses were approved and will be put into rotation for Fall 2022 including a community foundations course for incoming first year students as well as a health and wellness course for new and continuing students.
- As curriculum is tied to the production season, the School hired a casting consultant to create better equity in the casting process and developed a student committee to provide space for student voice in the season selection process. The Scaffolding Change (EDI) Committee was reinvigorated and an EDI sub-committee of faculty titled the Cultural Climate Task Force was created to specifically attend to professional development for faculty and staff around changes to curriculum. The committees continue to develop a comprehensive plan of action to address several key challenges within the school as they relate to EDI, including communication of challenges/issues, casting, season selection, and degree track preferential treatment as well as representation, healing, and community building. Biannual community dialogues and biweekly School meetings are held to prioritize open communication and to continue to facilitate curriculum shifts.
EXHIBITION EXPLORES CONCEPTS OF BLACKNESS THROUGH THE EYES OF CONTEMPORARY ARTISTS
Professor of Dance Duane Cyrus is the guest curator for “Black@Intersection: Contemporary Black Voices in Art” presented by the Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art (SECCA). In January 2021, SECCA posted an open call for guest curator submissions, seeking new voices and new perspectives for a collaborative exhibition showcasing work being … read more.
GREENSBORO DANCE FILM FESTIVAL PRESENTS “UPROOTED: THE JOURNEY OF JAZZ DANCE”
The UNC Greensboro School of Dance, in partnership with Sugarfoote Productions, will present the 7th Annual Greensboro Dance Film Festival October 29th-30th. The festival kicks off with a special screening of “Uprooted: The Journey of Jazz Dance” at the UNCG Auditorium. “Uprooted” is a ground-breaking documentary that traces the roots of … read more.
The UNCG School of Theatre is sponsoring several workshops for BIPOC students
The UNCG School of Theatre is sponsoring several workshops for BIPOC students including a Black Acting Methods workshop on Mental Health and Wellness for BIPOC performers on February 11, 2022. Other opportunities will include Theatrical Intimacy Training for all students, staff, and faculty with Laura Rikard the co-founder and head faculty of Theatrical Intimacy Education.
UNCG School of Theatre will be participating in the Black Lives Matter Theatre Festival
UNCG School of Theatre will be participating in the Black Lives Matter Theatre Festival (April 2022) along with 8 other local colleges and universities in Greensboro. Students will collaborate in the events as performers and crew on shows at different colleges and spaces for this amazing production series. UNCG will be producing Nick & the Prizefighter by UNCG alum Kamilah Bush at Triad Stage directed by Natalie Sowell. Other titles include August Wilson’s Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, Periphery by Ed Simpson, and Mend A City by Vanecia Boone. The schedule is as follows:
Black Lives Matter Theatre Festival 2022
Mend A City: The Movement
Written by Vanecia Boone
Directed by Playwright Vanecia Boone
Bennett College’s Little Theater
April 8-10, 2022
Periphery
Written by Ed Simpson
Directed by Doug Brown
High Point University
April 11-13, 2022
Nick & the Prizefighter
Written by Kamilah Bush
Directed by Natalie Sowell
UNCG @ Triad Stage
April 22-24, 2022
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Written by August Wilson
Directed by Miller Lucky, Jr.
NC A&T’s Paul Robeson Theater
April 28-May 1, 2021