Below you will find information about the UW School of Drama's pilot mentorship programs for BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and Person of Color) students. These programs are part of our School of Drama Leadership Anti-Racist Action Plan. These plans are being developed based on input from numerous sources, including current students, alumni, faculty, staff, and the School of Drama’s EDIA Task Force.
Because we recognize that graduate students and undergraduate students are in different places in their academic and artistic careers and therefore have different needs regarding mentorship, we are developing separate programs for grads and undergrads.
These programs are in a pilot phase. They will undoubtedly shift, grow, and deepen over time as we learn more about how we can better support our BIPOC students through mentorship. It is very possible that year two of these programs will look quite different than year one. Your candid feedback will be a critical part of that learning process. Thank you for embarking on this journey with us.
UNDERGRADUATE STUDENT MENTORSHIP PROGRAM FOR BIPOC STUDENTS
BIPOC BAs: Read a message for you from Sara Porkalob
Beginning in the 2020-2021 school year, the School of Drama will coordinate panel discussions with BIPOC members of the community, facilitated by a BIPOC member of the community. These panels will only be open to School of Drama undergraduate majors, pre-majors, and minors who self-identify as Black, Indigenous, or Person of Color (including international students). Some purposes of these panels will be:
- To allow BIPOC undergraduates to network and form connections with BIPOC professionals in the industry
- To allow BIPOC undergraduates to envision and ask questions about various post-BA career paths, including graduate school
- To provide BIPOC undergraduates with a safe environment to seek advice about succeeding as a BIPOC artist and scholar, including issues related to navigating predominantly white spaces in our industry and in academia
Our goal is to produce at least two panels during the 2020-2021 school year. The panelists and the panel facilitator will be paid.
UPDATE 3.2.21: In the fall, we announced that the school would produce a series of mentorship panels for BIPOC/global majority undergraduates this year. We contracted Seattle-based artist/activist Sara Porkalob to lead the development of these panels. This quarter, Sara has been leading regular meetings with a group of faculty and staff to plan the panels. Through these conversations, we have recognized a need to engage more deeply with our BIPOC/global majority undergraduate students in order to bring this program into alignment with our goal of building a relational culture in the school. Therefore, we will not hold a mentorship panel this quarter. Instead, Sara will host a series of small, social gatherings with BIPOC/global majority undergraduate students with the goals of building relationships and of better understanding their needs, hopes, and ideas for the program. Based on these conversations, we will work with Sara to develop a panel, symposium, or other type of programming that is responsive to student needs. That program will take place during spring quarter.
Professor Scott Magelssen, Undergraduate Coordinator, will be the main School of Drama coordinator for this program. He can be contacted at magelss@uw.edu.
If you are a current UW Drama undergraduate major, pre-major, or minor who identifies as Black, Indigenous, or a Person of Color and you are interested in participating in these panels, please complete this survey to help us understand your needs and preferences.
GRADUATE STUDENT MENTORSHIP PROGRAM FOR BIPOC STUDENTS
Beginning in the fall of 2020, all graduate students (MFA and PhD) who self-identify as Black, Indigenous, or People of Color (including international students), will be offered one-to-one mentorship with an external mentor. These students will have the opportunity to provide input into who their mentor is, and faculty will work to match students with mentors who fulfill each student’s specific needs. Mentors will be paid, and asked to be available for six meetings with their mentee over the course of the school year. Mentors will also be offered free tickets to School of Drama productions and, when possible, invitations to in-class showings, so that they can see their mentees’ work.
Maritza Ogarro, Administrative Assistant, will be the main School of Drama coordinator for this program. She can be contacted at mogarro@uw.edu.
If you are a current UW Drama graduate student who identifies as Black, Indigenous, or a Person of Color, and you are interested in mentorship, please complete this survey to help us understand your needs and preferences.
FAQs
How are you deciding who gets access to mentorship?
This mentorship program is for Black, Indigenous, and Person of Color graduate and undergraduate students in the School of Drama. We are asking students to self-identify as BIPOC.
Why are there different programs for undergrads and graduate students?
Undergraduate students and graduate students are in different places in their career and academic journeys. Whereas graduate students have elected to spend three or more years pursuing a specialized discipline, undergraduate students may still be exploring disciplines and trying to determine what aspect of theatre they wish to pursue—or if they wish to pursue a theatre career at all. Undergraduates may choose to pursue advanced degrees following graduation, whereas most-if-not-all of our graduate students will enter their professional careers immediately upon completing their degrees. For these reasons, we have elected to build a program for graduate students that allows them to receive more discipline-specific mentorship, and one for undergraduates that permits greater exploration and access to a wider variety of potential future mentors.
I’m an undergrad. If I meet someone in a panel who I want to talk with more, is it okay for me to reach out to them?
Participants in our undergraduate panels will be asked to provide contact information and indicate whether they are open to being approached by students for more in-depth conversation and career advice. So, yes, if the panelist has given their consent, you can definitely reach out to them for further career advice.
Why is there no mentorship program for white students?
The School of Drama’s faculty and staff is overwhelmingly white, as is the wider theatre community. We have consistently heard from our BIPOC students that they need access to mentors of color who can help them navigate our school and the industry, where BIPOC students contend with numerous barriers, stemming from racism and white supremacy, that white students do not. If you are a white student who desires one-to-one mentorship, we encourage you to reach out directly or request an introduction to the faculty, staff, or community member whose mentorship you seek. Additionally, the Husky Leadership Certificate program, which includes one-to-one mentorship, is available to all third-, fourth-, and fifth-year undergraduates.
How can I provide feedback about these programs?
Your feedback is needed and welcomed. You can either email School of Drama Director Geoff Korf at gkorf@uw.edu or email dramafeedback@uw.edu or use the anonymous feedback form.