Dear Friends and Colleagues,
At a time when we’re welcoming our new students who are starting their journeys in the College of Fine Arts, we’re also welcoming a significant number of new leaders and faculty members. I hope you’ll join me in extending a warm welcome to these new folks.
On our leadership team for the college, playwright and scholar Lisa B. Thompson has joined our college as our interim associate dean for graduate education and academic affairs, and seasoned music education specialist and scholar Amy Simmons has stepped into the role of interim director of UTeach Fine Arts, our fine arts education portfolio. After 41 years, Executive Director and Assistant Dean for Development Sondra Lomax will be retiring from the University on Aug. 31, and Natalie Seeboth will be stepping up as interim chief development officer.
We also have an exciting cohort of seven new faculty members in the college I’d like to introduce.
As our programs in opera, choir and voice continue to thrive, we’re bringing two great new talents to help us teach in vocal performance and lead the ensembles. Holly Dalrymple joins us as an associate professor of practice in voice and the new associate director of choral activities, and Carlos Santelli is the new assistant professor of voice. Marissa Guarriello is a new assistant professor in Music and Human Learning, and she will lead the String Project, one our longest-standing and impactful community outreach programs, to train young musicians.
In the Department of Art and Art History, we have two new faculty members joining the painting and drawing area: Assistant Professors Farima Fooladi and Carlos Rosales-Silva. Both artists have Texas roots — Rosales-Silva is an alumnus of our own B.F.A. program, and Fooladi has been active in Houston. These two new hires are a great opportunity to rebuild our painting program after the retirements of some key faculty members.
In the Department of Theatre and Dance, we welcome Assistant Professors Zachary Fine (acting) and Rachel Merrill Moss (theatre history). Fine can be seen next month in an Alley Theatre production of The DaVinci Code in Houston, and Moss will help us shore up faculty expertise on history as a methodology with her work on European and American theatre.
I’m excited about the skills and expertise these new leaders and faculty members bring to their new roles in the college, and I look forward to working with everyone as we dive into a new year on the Forty Acres.
Sincerely,
