Michele Apriña Leavy (MFA dramatic art, ’94), a lecturer in theatre and dance, has been accepted into the ACCELERATE Fellows Program, designed to support the creation of inclusive and equitable e-learning environments, including but not limited to the transition of face-to-face courses into online courses.

ACCELERATE is meant to inform course transformation efforts for faculty at various stages of the process, including those who are still exploring opportunities to those who are already engaged in redesign and would like more information on inclusive practices. Regardless of where you are in planning for technology-intensive instruction, ACCELERATE will inform the development of your course. If you have taught remotely already, then ACCELERATE will give you additional considerations for course revisions or adaptations for future course offerings.

The ACCELERATE program is housed in the Center for Educational Effectiveness, Office of Undergraduate Education.

Leavy is a professional actor and theatre educator who has performed locally with the American Conservatory Theater, Alameda Civic Ballet, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, BRAVA Theater Center, California Shakespeare Theater, Center Repertory Company, Livermore Shakespeare Festival, Marin Theatre Company, and TheatreWorks, among others. Beyond the bay she has worked with The Elephant Theater Co. in Los Angeles, and Theatre 167 in New York City. As a teaching artist she has taught and directed throughout the Bay Area for the American Conservatory Theater, the Berkeley Rep School of Theatre, and Cañada College. Leavy is a long-standing resident artist with San Francisco’s Crowded Fire Theater and serves on their Literary Committee. She is also a core member of B.A.L.T.A.N. the Bay Area Latino Theater Artist’s Network.