This breadth of diversity necessitates a differentiated teaching approach to the classroom. The cultural norms of our students demand an openness to a variety of teaching strategies to ensure that the content is being comprehended. Likewise, intercultural communication skills are also critical. I have honed these skills through my experiences as a teacher in addition to a focus on this area in my doctoral work. The following link provides thoughts I composed after reading Greg Mortenson's Three Cups of Tea:
Three Cups Culture
I recently had the pleasure of participating in SNHU's recognition of Women's History Month. A program that sought stores of character, courage, and commitment. I shared the following which gives a sense of the support I have demonstrated for diverse populations:
WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH: “I have enjoyed a couple of careers in my lifetime including my first as a theater actress in New York City. I worked primarily off- and off-off Broadway doing original, experimental work that was often coined “downtown” theater. This geographic description was apt as we tended to perform below 14th Street in converted storefronts, lofts, and commercial spaces. We were part of a generation that was compelled to develop and produce our own work outside of the mainstream. Our budgets were limited and so our performance venues were real estate not yet considered premium.
My career in theater also coincided with the height of the AIDS crisis in the United States. A life in the theater mandated a political voice at that time as our best and brightest were dying horrible deaths from AIDS. It was not unusual for a rehearsal to be postponed so that cast members could join in an ACT UP demonstration demanding more resources devoted to AIDS research.
In the winter of 1992, I performed with Tiny Mythic Theatre Company in a double bill of original works: 'Heartpiece' and 'A Brief Architectural History of the American Closet.' I was in the 'Heartpiece' work which was part of an ongoing workshop exploring dance and gesture in a theatrical narrative. The accompanying 'Closet' piece explored themes surrounding homosexuality and the struggle to “come out.”
From the beginning, this double-bill had notoriety. Given our tight budgets in downtown theatre, marketing always included 'wheatpasting' or 'flyposting.' This is an essentially guerilla form of marketing where teams travel around the city in the afterhours and wheatpaste posters advertising events. The act is a violation of city codes as it constitutes littering and is why the team approach is always used: one stands as a lookout for police while the other pastes the posters.
A fellow cast member from 'Closet' and I had the misfortune of not noticing a patrolling police sedan during our wheatpasting expedition one Sunday night/Monday morning. Luckily the officers just asked us for a copy of the poster and cruised away.
The notoriety built as a Manhattan Public Access producer shot footage of 'Closet' to be aired on a cable show. The cable broadcast brought large crowds to the downtown theatre space where we performed. It also brought death threats. A homophobic message was left on the theatre company’s answering machine that promised death to the actors. We contacted the police. They knew about the show because they had the confiscated show poster at the precinct. A patrol car was assigned to the theatre for the remainder of the run to watch for suspicious activity. We were told not to leave the theatre alone and to vary our routes both to and from the venue. An actor who worked with another company and who owned a car volunteered to drive the casts of both shows to different subway stops each night to foil any attempts on our lives.
Despite efforts to disrupt the performances, the remainder of the run was successful. We had packed houses each night and none of the cast members encountered any hostility or danger as a result of the shows’ themes. We could have opted to cancel the remaining performances, but I don’t think any of us considered it an option. If anything, the threats reinforced our commitment to the work. There is an old showbiz adage that the show must go on.' Never was this more clear to me as a young artist.”
- SNHU Coordinator of General Education Shawn M. Powers
