The awardees are Paul Calenberg, director of University Theatre and chair of the department of communication studies, global languages and performing arts; and Vickie Kuester, associate director of the Office of International Education.
Calenberg’s efforts include paying special attention to diversity in theater classes he teaches and in the plays and musicals he chooses for University Theatre’s productions.
His class Theatre in Our World addresses diversity and how theater productions are an avenue to help explore issues related to diversity. In spring 2018, he began teaching a new class, Multiculturalism and Diversity in American Theatre, which explores race, ethnicity and sexual orientation through plot and themes in dramatic literature.
In collaboration with colleague Jennifer Sansfacon, recent theater productions that Calenberg has chosen and directed cover a range of human experiences, such as “The Normal Heart,” which examined the beginning of the AIDS epidemic and the impacts on the gay community. “Seussical” the musical addressed the topics of respect and dignity and involved children from the Menomonie school district.
Calenberg has worked at UW-Stout for 20 years.
Kuester helps recruit students from around the world and helps guide them at UW-Stout through the international education office. She oversees the annual International Week, which typically involves students from about 35 countries and draws about 500 people to various events.
She has been an adviser to the International Relations Club, worked with host families for international students in the community and conducted workshops on cross-cultural communication, along with other special efforts.
Kuester has worked at UW-Stout for 36 years.
The awards, announced by the Diversity Bridge Team, were created to help increase awareness of the UW System inclusive excellence philosophy, to recognize the variety of campus projects that embrace the inclusive excellence framework and to annually reward the people at the forefront of diversifying the campus population and addressing campus climate needs.
Nominees were considered for the awards based on how their efforts led to positive institutional change; accountability; intersections across multiple dimensions of diversity; and collaboration with other units and departments as well as communities beyond the university.
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Photos
Paul Calenberg
Vickie Kuester
