Dr. Judy Dean and Dr. Vanessa Quainoo will be moderating discussions following the keynote presentation each evening. We are anticipating a rich time of dialog with the speakers, and community conversation in relation to each of the evening contributions. In addition, Dr. Quainoo will be leading us in a reader's theater experience Sunday morning following our time of formal worship.
Dr. Vanessa Wynder Quainoo is an Associate Professor with a joint appointment in the Departments of Communication and Africana Studies at the University of Rhode Island, Harrington School of Communication and Media. She holds a B.A. from Wheaton College in Communication Studies and Theology, an M.A. from Western Illinois University in Communication Studies and a Ph.D. in Rhetoric from the University of Massachusetts. Dr. Quainoo’s primary interests are social rhetoric and race discourse. She has a profound regard for the power of the spoken word and the speaker’s ability to create community, bridge racial divisiveness and create shared justice. Along with her communication degrees, Dr. Quainoo has a degree in theology and a sustained interest in the African American Church. She is an ordained minister and serves as a consultant for many Church organizations within the African American Faith Community. An international director for a West African women’s empowerment organization, Dr. Quainoo travels extensively to West Africa.
Dr. Quainoo’s research merges her interests in rhetoric, oral performance and theology. Much of her work is in the form of creative oral performance. Most of her performances are of original works which she directs and stages in both solo and reader’s theater format.
