FLEURETTE S. FERNANDO

Fleurette S. Fernando is the Founding Director of the Arts Leadership Program in the Katherine G. McGovern College of the Arts at the University of Houston, where she serves as Instructional Associate Professor. She also serves as Associate Dean of Academic and Strategic Initiatives for KGMCA.

Professor Fernando is a graduate of the Claude Watson School for the Arts in Toronto, a graduate of the National Theatre School of Canada’s Directing Program in Montreal, and holds an MFA degree in Theatre Directing from York University. Fernando served as Artistic Director of Montreal’s Black Theatre Workshop and was the recipient of the Canada Council for the Arts’ first John Hirsch Prize for Young Directors, as well as a Fellowship of the Americas from the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts for her work on original play development in Canada.

She has worked as a writer, director, dramaturge, choreographer, educator, and arts administrator in organizations across Canada and the United States, including Mirvish Productions, Lorraine Hansberry Theatre, East Bay Center for the Performing Arts, and Brooklyn Academy of Music. She served as segment producer and host of BET on Jazz for Black Entertainment Television and as a participant in the National Association for Multi-Ethnicity in Communications’ Mentorship Program with HBO.

Fleurette was a participant in London’s Royal Court Theatre’s International Residency for Playwrights and Directors and served as Executive Director of the Katy Visual and Performing Arts Center. Most recently, she served as Director of Grants for Houston Arts Alliance, the designated arts agency for the City of Houston.

She has served on the board of the Association of Arts Administration Educators and the Midtown Art and Theatre Center Houston. She is currently a board member of the Houston Cinema Arts Society.

Professor Fernando served as Chair of the Community and Government Relations Committee of the UH Faculty Senate and, in 2018, received a Teaching Excellence Award from the University of Houston for her work in community engagement.

Education

MFA Theatre - York University- 2000