William J. Winsor
Associate Dean
Associate Professor of Scenic Design
BA – Wilmington College
MFA – Ohio State University
William J. Winsor is an accomplished administrator and artist with a distinguished record of teaching, research/creative activity, and service in higher education combined with successful experience in faculty relations, academic governance, student affairs, program development, budgeting and fundraising.
He holds an MFA in Scenography from the Ohio State University, and a BA in Theatre from Wilmington College. Prior to coming to West Virginia University, he taught for Coe College, the University of South Florida, The Ohio State University, the University of Pittsburgh and DeSales University. He has also worked as a freelance stage designer and consultant by providing design and production services for both academic and professional producing agencies.
Winsor joined WVU’s Division of Theatre and Dance in 1989 as an Associate Professor of Stage Design, and in 1995 he was appointed Chair of the Division of Theatre and Dance. During his chairmanship, the Division increased enrollment by 30%, received the first endowed professorship in the College, extensively renovated its performance spaces and established an international exchange with the E.T.A. Hoffmann Theatre in Bamberg, Germany.
In 2001, he was appointed to the position of Associate Dean of the College of Creative Arts at WVU where he now assists Dean Bernard Schultz in fostering and sustaining an intellectual, creative and student-centered environment. During his tenure at WVU, Winsor has received outstanding teaching and service awards for his work with the Divsion, College and University.
Winsor has worked as a minority arts consultant, served as the Dean of Academics for the West Virginia Governors’ School for the Arts and Executive Director for WVU’s Summer Institute for Teacher Education in the Arts. He is a member of the United Scenic Artists of America-829, and he as designed more than 120 productions for academic, non-profit, and commercial producing agencies in local, regional and international venues.
His recent research/creative work has focused on illustrating Puppet Heroes from Around the World by Joann Spencer Siegrist and Pat Hale (published by New Plays, Incorporated) and completing a textbook intended to help students learn, process and apply two- and three-dimensional compositional theory in stage design.
