Jacob Pinholster

Jacob Pinholster, director of the School of Film, Dance and Theatre and associate professor in performance design, has been unanimously elected to the governing board of the University/Resident Theatre Association (URTA). URTA is the nation's largest association of professional, graduate (MFA) theatre training programs and related professional theatre companies, consisting of 39 influential universities and 15 partnered theatre companies. URTA helps to secure the future of the American Theatre by maintaining a gold standard in professional training of the next generation of theatre artists, and providing resources to diverse theatre artists entering the performing arts industry.

The URTA board of directors consists of six directors and four officers elected from member schools, with elections conducted in the fall. The board of directors has responsibility for the governance of the association and, as a collection of experts in the areas of theatre and theatre training, has considerable influence in guiding URTA's ongoing services and new programs.