UTEP Theatre and Dance JEDI Committee
The Desert Justice, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Committee*
The Desert JEDI (Justice, Equity, Diversity, Inclusion) Committee aims to serve as the liaison for students of the UTEP Department of Theatre and Dance to foster just, equitable, diverse, and inclusive educational processes to promote learning, belonging, and artistic growth for the student body.
The form below is completely anonymous and a safe space for you to share any concerns and ideas relating to JEDI in our department. Concerns will be brought up by members of the JEDI committee at Theatre and Dance faculty meetings.
DESERT JEDI COMMITEE CARETAKERS
Adriana Dominguez
Adriana Dominguez is an Assistant Professor and serves as the Director of BA/BFA Theatre Programs at the Department of Theatre & Dance at UTEP. She received her BA in Theatre Arts with a Minor in Secondary Education from the University of Texas at El Paso, her MA in Performing Arts Administration from New York University, and her PhD in Curriculum & Instruction from New Mexico State University. She has published with Chicana/Latina Studies, Journal of Latina Critical Feminism, Camino Real, presented at NACCS, MALCS, MALAS, SCOLAS, AITNER, NEH, and KCACTF, and has received successful funding for projects from the Texas Commission on the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts. Recent projects include: Real Women Have Curves, Luna, El Toro y La Nina, A Christmas Carol, en la Frontera, and Into the Beautiful North. Her areas of focus are underrepresentation in theatre and Chicanx/Latinx work. Adriana lives in El Paso, TX, a vibrant community that knows no borders.
Tawanda Chabikwa
Tawanda Chabikwa is an interdisciplinary artist-scholar who’s work revolves around Black and Africana dance practices, practice-based research, and creative collaboration. Current research and creative practice investigates choreographic practices of transnational African artists, contemporary African theatrical dance, Africana religions/spiritualities and philosophy, decolonial pedagogies, embodied research methodologies. He holds a B.A. in Human Ecology from the College of the Atlantic, an M.F.A. in Dance from Southern Methodist University, and works with storytelling, performance art, and visual art (most recent exhibition was at the William H. Thomas Gallery in Columbus, Ohio 2017), and creative writing (first novel Baobabs in Heaven published in 2010). Tawanda holds a doctorate in Africana Studies from the Department of African American and African Studies at The Ohio State University and was recently a lecturer in the Global Arts Studies Program at University of California, Merced. Tawanda’s interdisciplinary scholarly and creative endeavors have led to collaborative encounters, including think-tank initiatives, educational practice, performances exhibitions, and presentations in Zimbabwe, France, Mozambique, many parts of the United States and more.
Kim McKean
Kim McKean is an Assistant Professor of Performance at the University of Texas at El Paso. Along with acting and directing, her scholarship involves new work development for the stage and screen, along with investigating the mechanics of the creative process for directors, actors, and writers. In the fall of 2019, Kim will direct and develop a world-premiere play with playwright Georgina Escobar, which will premiere at the Chamizal National Memorial in El Paso, TX, as well as direct Love & Information by Caryl Churchill at Trap Door Theatre in Chicago. As an actor, Kim has appeared on HBO, ABC, CMT and Spike TV, along with starring in several independent films, commercials, and numerous stage productions across the US and Europe. She is the founder and curator of a Latinx New Works Festival which will premiere in El Paso in Spring 2020. Her production of Lydia by Octavio Solis won several national awards from the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival including “Outstanding Director of a Play” and “Outstanding Production of a Play.” Additionally, she has received “Best Actress” recognition for her work at both the New York International Film Festival and the Midtown International Theatre Festival in New York City. She has appeared on HBO, ABC, CMT and Spike TV, along with starring in several independent films, commercials, and numerous stage productions across the US and Europe. Her film, The Arrangements-- which she directed, produced, and acted in-- was an official selection for the Dumbo Film Festival, Borderscene Film Festival, El Paso Film Festival, and Plaza Classic Film Festival Local Flavor series. She received a BA in Theatre from the University of Wisconsin--Madison and an MFA from the University of California–Irvine. She is a member of SAG-AFTRA and Actors Equity Association.
