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About Nyama

Nationally recognized dance educator, Dr. Nyama McCarthy-Brown is an Associate Professor of Community Engagement through Dance Pedagogy, at The Ohio State University. In 2021, she was the recipient of national awards from Dance Teacher Magazine and National Dance Education Organization for her work as a culturally sustaining pedagogue.  Nyama teaches dance education and contemporary dance with Africanist underpinnings grounded in the celebration of all movers. She is an established scholar, with articles in numerous academic publications. In 2017, her book, Dance Pedagogy for a Diverse World: Culturally Relevant Teaching in Research, Theory, and Practice was released and quickly became an anchoring text in dance education. Currently she is working on her second book about women of Color in ballet.  Dr. McCarthy-Brown is an active consultant and workshop facilitator for diversifying dance curriculum for organizations such as: San Francisco Ballet School; Cincinnati Ballet; Enrich Chicago; Dance Educators Coalition, Minnesota; Rutgers University Dance Department; University of Buffalo; Ohio Dance and Dance Education Laboratory.