As Director of the Academy of Visual and Performing Arts (AVPA) at Texas A&M University (2017–2020), I managed a $140K annual budget and coordinated performances, student engagement initiatives, and research and curriculum development grants. Through AVPA’s institutional framework, I advanced interdisciplinary collaboration across the Colleges of Architecture, Education, and Liberal Arts, strengthening the visibility and impact of the arts on campus. I led a national survey of arts programs (2019), which contributed to the formation of the College of Performance, Visualization, and Fine Arts, and co-edited the special issue “The Zoom Function” of the International Journal of Performance Arts and Digital Media (2021), establishing AVPA’s first presence on a scholarly publication platform.

The Academy for the Visual & Performing Arts (AVPA) at Texas A&M University advances the arts on campus and in the Brazos Valley, providing opportunities for students, faculty, and staff to experience, study and make art.

Letters Home puts the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq front and center by bringing to life actual letters written by soldiers serving in the Middle East. It gives the audience a powerful portrait of the soldiers’ experiences while deployed and separated from family and loved ones.

Known for its engaging performance and technically superb dancers, the company performs critically acclaimed works at its biannual Philadelphia seasons, as well as in touring performances around the country.

Philip Beesley is is an internationally recognized expert and pioneer in kinetic, responsive, near-living architectural installations. He is a practicing visual artist, architect, and Professor in Architecture at the University of Waterloo and Professor of Digital Design and Architecture & Urbanism at the European Graduate School. His work were presented in several public venues including the 2012 Biennale of Sydney and is widely cited in contemporary art and architecture, focusing on the rapidly expanding technology and culture of responsive and interactive systems.