Dr. Kimmika Williams-Witherspoon, Ph.D (Anthropology), M.A. Anthropology, MFA (Theater),Graduate Certificate)Women's Studies, B.A. (Journalism); is an Assistant Professor in the Theater Department at Temple University. A 2001 Independence Foundation Theater Communications Group Grant, the 2000 winner of the PEW Charitable Trust $50,000 fellowship in scriptwriting, and the 1999, winner of the DaimlerChrysler "Spirit of the Word" National Poetry Competition (Seattle) at the Unity'99 Conference, Kimmika Williams has also been the recipient of a host of awards and honors, including: the DaimlerChrysler Regional Poetry Contest (Philadelphia), the 1996, Lila Wallace Creative Arts Fellowship with the American Antiquarian Society and a two-time returning playwright with the Minneapolis Playwrights' Center and Pew Charitable Trusts Playwrights Exchange. Williams was, at one time, Arts Producer for public radio, WXPN-88.5, reporter and columnist with the Philadelphia Tribune and television editor for the Chicago-based "Maceba Affairs Media Review Magazine. As a journalist, Williams' articles and essays have appeared in the "Hammer" Journal,"Dialogue", the Philadelphia REAL NEWS, POETS & WRITERS Magazine, THE OTHER SIDE, the New York GUARDIAN NEWSWEEKLY, the DAILY MUSE, BLACK AMERICA MAGAZINE, PHILLY BEAT, HIGH PERFORMANCE MAGAZINE and the PHILADELPHIA DAILY NEWS. In 1986, she was commended for outstanding journalism by the Philadelphia Veterans Administration. Her stage credits include, "From Brillo Pads To Feminine Pads: Raw Abrasives", "A Product of Pop Culture and Pissed", "Nappy Truth", "Common Folk", "A CHAINED FOOT STUMBLING ON A NEW WORLD", "GUMBO", "WE THE PEOPLE","IZZY","THE BLACK DIAMOND" and "WHERE WERE YOU IN '65".
Kimmika's POETRY/PERFORMANCE Venues include: · Clef Club (February 2000) · Painted Bride ((February 2000) · Detroit Yacht Club (February 2000) · Gloria’s Café (February 2000) · Unity ‘99 (Seattle, August 1999) · New York DaimlerChrysler (December 1999) · Poet’s Den (February 1999) · Robins Bookstore (April 1999) · Girard College, Haverford Elementary School, Maner Junior College, Barns & Noble Bryn Mawr, Bread of Life Bookstore, West Philadelphia Regional Library, Poetry in the Park, Penn’s Landing (1998—1997), WarmDaddy’s Po’Jazz Series, Community Education Center, The Mayor’s Conference on Women, Graterford Prison, The Black Family Reunion (Philadelphia & Washington D.C.), Philadelphia Black Writers Conference, North Carolina A&T, Swarthmore College.
As a PRESENTER some of Kimmika's
Venues include:
Presenter: “Women of Color Resisting Violence” University of Minnesota, April 2000 --- Presenter: W.E.B. Dubois Conference, Philadelphia Medical College “Grafitti As Resistance Art: Deconstructing Philadelphia’ Wall Art” April 2000 --- Presenter: “Ties That Bind: A Comparative Analysis of the Work of Zora Neale Hurston and Geneva Smitherman Work on African American Language” — African American Rhetoric and Innovation as a part of the 1999 Congress of the Humanities and Social Justice Federation of Canada, Quebec June 1999 --- Panel Organizer & Panelist: “Fabulous Forty: The Anthropology of Barbie and Her Impact on Western Notions of the Ideal”. Feminist Futures Conference, Rutgers University, May 1999 --- Panelist: Tenth Annual Black Writers Conference, Community College Philadelphia, 1998 --- Presenter: “Bridge Across My Back: A Discussion of the Work of Collaboration Among Women Artists of Color”, Feminist Futures, Rutgers University --- Seventh Annual Cheikh Anta Diop African American Studies Conference, Temple University, Ebonics: African Language in the Diaspora, “Identifying Afrocentric Characteristics in the Language of Black America”, 1995 --- Presenter: Camden County College Black History Month Lecture Series, “A Question of Identity: Why African American Women Don’t Embrace the Feminist Movement”, 1995 --- Lectures: Smith College, Philadelphia College of Textiles, Keystone Junior College, Roanoke University, University of Delaware, University of Glassboro, Megar Evers College, University of Pennsylvania, Temple University, Pierce Junior College, University of the Arts
