Alumni

Bisa Butler is a textile artist who creates vivid quilted portraits of African-American life. Born in 1973, Butler initially went into the arts as a painter, earning her BFA at Howard University and her MA in arts education at Montclair State University, where she took a fiber arts class. At Howard, Butler mentored members of the African Commune of Bad Relevant Artists (AfriCOBRA), which sought to define an art aesthetic that represents African Americans in a positive light.  Butler taught art at public high schools for 13 years, quilting in her free time, until she found representation with Claire Oliver Gallery in Harlem and became an artist full-time. In her work, which is deeply rooted in the tradition of African-American quilting, Butler uses Ghanian fabrics, Nigerian batiks, and South African fabrics to capture her subjects’ African ancestry and their place in American history. She has exhibited her work in group and solo shows around the United States and the world. 

All of my pieces are done in life scale to invite the viewer to engage in a dialogue—most figures look the viewers directly in their eyes. I am inviting a reimagining and a contemporary dialogue about age old issues, still problematic in our culture, through the comforting, embracing medium of the quilt. I am expressing what I believe is the equal value of all humans.

Dr. Woods received his Bachelor of Music degree from Southeastern Louisiana University, Master of Music from Howard University, the Performer’s Diploma from the Peabody Conservatory of The Johns Hopkins University, and Doctor of Arts in Music Performance and Pedagogy from the University of Northern Colorado. 

Woods is a Sphinx LEAD (Leaders in Excellence, Arts, and Diversity) fellow. Sphinx LEAD is a two-year fellowship designed to evolve the industry landscape by empowering the next generation of executive leaders of Color. This is achieved through participation in executive leadership retreats, mentorship, and networking at top institutions at the national level.

Dr. Woods has received several teaching awards including the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff Chancellor’s Distinguished Teaching Award and the Peabody Preparatory of The Johns Hopkins University’s Diversity in Teaching Award. 

Dr. Woods has held teaching positions at the University of Northern Colorado, Coppin State University, the Levine School of Music, and the Peabody Preparatory of Music. Dr. Woods has enjoyed performing and teaching throughout the U.S., Japan, China, and Thailand.  

Woods has performed as principal trumpet with the Sphinx Symphony Orchestra. The Sphinx Symphony Orchestra is based in Detroit MI and is a premiere organization that is strongly dedicated to diversity in the arts and is completely comprised of members who are of African American and Latinx descent. This ensemble includes performers with full-time positions in the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Detroit, Seattle, and Phoenix Symphonies, and university professorships.

Source: International Trumpet Guild

Roz White is a vocal musician, actor, motivational speaker, and educator. She is currently starring in and receiving stellar reviews for her self-penned cabaret “Pearl Bailey… by Request”. A Washington, DC native, Roz graduated from Duke Ellington School of the Arts, and Howard University. At Howard University Roz made history when she became the first and the only Miss Howard University to win the nationally televised Miss Collegiate African- American Pageant. She has worked as a featured vocalist with Yolanda Adams, Stevie Wonder, and the late Michael Jackson. In theatre, she has become widely recognized for her versatility, boasting a resume that includes leading roles in a variety of productions throughout the US and abroad. Her newest venture is a music movement called “Griot Soul” which merges her storytelling gift with the warmth and earthiness of her vocal styling. Roz is a trailblazer, and has performed in venues such as Madison Square Garden, The Kennedy Center, Ashford and Simpson’s Sugar Bar, The Apollo Theatre, Constitution Hall, The Shrine Theatre, and The White House. TV appearances include The Soul Train Christmas Spectacular, Lou Rawls Tribute to the Stars, The Oprah Winfrey Show, The View, and Quincy Jones’ VIBE. Roz recorded two hit dance singles which gained recognition in Billboard magazine’s New and Noteworthy column. She can be heard as the sexy featured vocalist on the R&B smash “The Moon” by independent soul star Eric Roberson. Roz is a devoted mother to two brilliant sons, Anthony and King. Roz is a member of D.I.V.A Incorporated, the Society for Women in the Arts -- Founded at Howard University.

My experience at Howard in the College of Fine Arts was, in a word, charmed. From the invaluable technique, training and nurturing I gleaned from my amazing mentors-Mike Malone, TG Cooper, Dr. Carole Singleton, Joe Selmon, Reggie Ray, Al Freeman Jr. Vera Katz, and Henri Edmonds--to my reigns as Miss Howard (crowned by the one and only Debbie Allen) and Miss Collegiate African America, I couldn’t have dreamed a more fulfilling and powerful journey into my passion and chosen profession as a performing and teaching artist.