The College of Arts & Media (CAM) at CU Denver is  proud to announce the engagement of Katie Leonard to serve as a Special Advisor to the Dean and Activist-in-Residence to CAM.

Leonard will be working closely with the CAM Dean and the CAM Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) Task Force. The EDI Task Force will elevate CAM to provide vital first-stage support to foster individual creative self-awareness, expression, and personal growth–– and also to motivate students to reach out and explore the potential of emerging areas of public consciousness. This will be driven by measures to support diversifying faculty and staff, tackling social justice issues in the campus community, listening to leading authorities, and expanding inclusive pedagogy and curriculum. 

"I believe that we need to provide the pathways to advance learning, both by word and personal example, to examine and challenge cultural and social barriers where they encounter them, to record through their art the vibrant dynamics of our society, and to recognize their own accountability as active and necessary contributors to this culture," says Dean Laurence Kaptain.

Leonard is a Denver native and lead organizer for Anti-Racist Club Colorado. Kaptain sought her as a partner after learning about the collaboration between the Anti-Racist Club and RedLine Contemporary Art Center to dismantle systemic racism.

In her first weeks as Activist-in Residence, Leonard will listen to campus and college conversations and review current structures. CAM is proud to have a partner to examine internal and external challenges and hold itself accountable to a role as a vibrant, creative contributor to culture.

The College of Arts & Media (CAM) at CU Denver has more than 1,300 students and 150 faculty and professional staff and is the only college leveraging the influence of CU Denver in the heart of Denver’s thriving arts industry to produce graduates who are ready to inspire, lead and create. CAM offers degrees and programs in Film & Television, Media Forensics, Music & Entertainment, and Visual Arts. Several programs are nationally ranked, including Music Business, Jazz Guitar, Singer/Song Writer, Film & Television, Illustration, and 3D Graphics & Animation.