The College of Visual and Performing Arts at James Madison University believes that equity, access and inclusion are moral imperatives and artistic obligations. Diversity—in the stories we represent, the students we serve, and the audiences we engage—is vital for the health and relevance of contemporary arts practice. CVPA, therefore, welcomes diversity of perspective, ethnicity, race, religion, socio-economic status, gender identity, sexual orientation, and ability.
The faculty and staff of the College of Visual and Performing Arts stand in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement.
We are listening and learning in this moment, and we commit ourselves anew to joining Black individuals and communities in the fight against racial inequality. As educators and artists, we pledge to continue this deeply necessary work not only in our classrooms and performance spaces, but also in our hearts and minds.
To our Black students: We see you and we stand with you.
New Assistant Dean of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Named
Art professor Susan Zurbrigg has been named the CVPA Assistant Dean of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion! A recent recipient of the Beck Faculty Fellowship, Susan has been a tireless advocate for change through the arts at JMU and in the Harrisonburg and Rockingham communities through the Truth, Racial Healing and Transformation "Change the Narrative" project.
In Fall 2019, Professor Zurbrigg staged an art intervention with JMU students that memorialized Charlotte Harris, a black woman lynched by a white mob near Harrisonburg in 1878. On Saturday, September 26, 2020, the Northeast Neighborhood Association and the Harrisonburg Community Remembrance Project unveiled a historical marker for Charlotte Harris in Court Square. The community was invited to attend the unveiling ceremony virtually on The City of Harrisonburg's Facebook page.
CVPA Faculty and the African, African American, and Diaspora Studies Center
The African, African American, and Diaspora Studies Center provides interdisciplinary knowledge, programming and initiatives related to Black peoples, histories, cultures, languages, economics, philosophies, ideas and socio-political structures. The center’s core mission is to cater to student-faculty constituencies with academic interests in the peoples, cultures and institutions of Africa and the African Diaspora.
Faculty drawn from different departments and disciplines across the university constitute the program's primary academic constituency.
Several are drawn from CVPA:
Educational Resources
These resources are curated by the JMU College of Visual and Performing Arts. While not an exhaustive list, it seeks to provide resources for arts students, faculty, staff, alumni, and the larger community.
Anti-Racism Resources
Black Lives Matter:
Collated Anti-Racism Education Resource Lists:
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A Comprehensive Anti-racism Resource List Scaffolded Anti-Racism Resources (Stages, Resources, & Next Steps)
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Critical Race Theory: An Introduction. Delgado, R., & Stefancic, J. (2017), New York University Press.
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We do this ‘til we free us: Abolitionist organizing and transforming justice. Kaba, M., & Meiners, E. R. (2021). Haymarket Books.
Articles and Tools to Teaching Race and Anti-Racist Practice in the Classroom:
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Talking About Race - National Museum of African American History & Culture
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Speaking Up at School: How to Respond to Everyday Prejudice, Bias, and Stereotypes
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Listening for Whiteness: Hearing Racial Politics in Undergraduate School Music by Julia Eklund Koza
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Cycle of Socialization by Bobbie Harro
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Listening for Whiteness by Julia Ekland Koza
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Decolonizing music education: Moving beyond tokenism. Hess, J. (2015b). International Journal of Music Education, 33(3), 336-347.
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Standing in the shadows of Mozart: Music education, world music, and curricular change. Bradley, D. (2017). In R. D. Moore (Ed.), College music curricula for a new century (pp. 205-222). Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780190658397.003.0011
What CVPA Academic Council Is Reading:
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Me and White Supremacy by Layla F. Saad
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Good Ancestor Podcast by Layla F. Saad
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Algorithms of Oppression: How Search Engines Reinforce Racism by Safiya Umoja Noble
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Deconstructing White Privilege with Dr. Robin DiAngelo
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Seeing White from Seen.On Radio
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White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack by Peggy McIntosh
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“America’s Racial Contract Is Killing Us” by Adam Serwer (Atlantic May 8, 2020)
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The Lie That Invented Racism - TED Talk by John Biewen
More CVPA sponsored events coming soon - see the Diversity Resources on Campus list for more events.
Past Events:
Disability Studies and Music Education Symposium
April, 2021 - The Center for Inclusive Music Engagement, in partnership with Augustana College, hosted the second biennial Disability Studies and Music Education Symposium. Read about it on the CIME Projects page.
