Art by Rachel
www.ArtPal.com/dolezal
Artist Bio: Rachel Dolezal
Rachel Doležal holds her Master of Fine Arts degree from Howard University and is a professor in the Africana Education Program at Eastern Washington University. Doležal has taught African and African American Art History, African History, African American Culture, and Intro to Africana Studies at EWU. Her scholarly research focus is the intersection of race, gender and class in the contemporary Black diaspora with a specific emphasis on Black women in visual culture. She is also a licensed intercultural and diversity Trainer and has taught Race & Ethnicity at Whitworth University, Anatomy Drawing at Howard University, and participated as a guest lecturer at Spokane Community College, University of Idaho, and Washington State University.
Her passion for civil rights is influenced by her years in Mississippi, where she advocated for equal rights and partnered with community developers, tutoring children in Black history and art. She is the former Director of Education at the Human Rights Education Institute in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho and remains a Consultant for human rights education and inclusivity in regional schools. During her experience as the Director of Education for the Human Rights Education Institute, Doležal developed programs and curriculum that expanded the annual audience from 3,000 per year to 23,000 per year. She created world-class exhibits, coordinated cultural events, scheduled keynote speakers, organized panel discussions and began the Young Advocates for Human Rights summer training program. Her efforts were met with opposition by North Idaho white supremacy groups, including the Ku Klux Klan, the Neo Nazis and the Aryan Nations. At least eight documented hate crimes targeted Doležal and her children during her time in North Idaho and Spokane.
In addition to her role as an educator, Doležal has fourteen years of experience as an exhibiting artist and has taught K-12 & college art lessons in public, private, and non-traditional school settings. Her works have been featured in The Artist’s Magazine, shown in 13 states and displayed at the United Nations’ Headquarters in New York. Doležal synthesizes art history, cultural studies and the creative process when teaching and believes that the creative process is part of what makes us human and unifies our self-identity with the world. Doležal is a professor in the Art Department at North Idaho College and the Advisor for the Black Student Union at NIC.
Doležal also entertains an interest in the medical field and has begun Pre-Medical studies, working toward an MD and a residency in trauma surgery. Doležal taught biology to middle school students in Post Falls, Idaho and hopes to combine her medical knowledge, her skilled hands, and her passion for human rights to engage in life-saving trauma surgery efforts around the world. Her other experiences include work as a legal secretary in a community law office in Mississippi, Zulu & ballet dancer, sushi chef, African hair stylist, model, political campaign manager, and mother. In her spare time, she enjoys traveling, gardening and cooking.
Posted By: Steve Williams
Wednesday, June 17th 2015 at 11:50AM
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