Empowering Creativity

A burgeoning art minor at Texas A&M University-San Antonio is helping students foster creativity, nurture their talents and explore career pathways within the local arts community.

The Creative Arts and Performance Studies (CAPS) minor, housed in the Department of Language, Literature and Arts, provides students with immersive and educational experiences in creative writing, music, theater and visual arts both on campus and in collaboration with the broader San Antonio arts community.

Brittany Ham, coordinator of the CAPS program and lecturer in the Department of Language, Literature and Arts, said CAPS fulfills a need for A&M-San Antonio students who are interested in creative arts.

“Students are really hungry for creative arts programming,” Ham said. “They want to take these art and music courses. They’re interested in creative writing, poetry, theater and film studies. There was a great need on campus for this program and we’re very enthusiastic and excited to fulfill that need.”

Since its launch in fall 2022, the CAPS minor has attracted about 80 students, offering them an opportunity to explore diverse art forms. 

“Something that’s really cool about the minor is that it’s an interdisciplinary arts minor,” said Dr. Katherine Gillen, an English professor and chair of the Department of Language, Literature and Arts. “Students aren’t necessarily getting a minor in music or visual art or theater itself, but it’s really a combined degree, so they’re able to explore their interests in different art forms and the whole program emphasizes art in the community.”

The CAPS program also enriches student experiences through University programs, activities and partnerships. Students have the opportunity to write, edit and produce visual art for the student literary magazine, Mosaic. They can also participate in the University’s annual Arts Expo, which showcases student exhibitions, poetry readings and performances from student groups, including University Voices choir and Mariachi Los Jaguares del Sur.

In addition, each semester, the University hosts its Visiting Writer Series, where high-profile creative writers are invited to give a public reading and conduct workshops for students. 

Through a University partnership, students pursuing a CAPS minor also have the chance to participate in workshops and plays at Teatro Audaz, a theater in San Antonio. The collaboration is part of the Borderlands Shakespeare Colectiva, a group of scholars, educators, artists and activists who focus on Shakespeare adaptations that are set and reflect the lived realities of the U.S. – Mexico Borderlands. 

Gillen, along with Dr. Adrianna Santos, an English associate professor at A&M-San Antonio, and Dr. Kathryn Vomero Santos, an English associate professor at Trinity University started Borderlands Shakespeare Colectiva in 2019. They have since published multiple anthologies reimagining Shakespeare’s plays. The Colectiva partnered with the theater company last year to produce "I-DJ," which explores the queer Chicano/Chicana experience.

Gillen said the skills students gain through these types of experiences and other CAPS offerings will help prepare them for careers in the arts field, whether it’s as a writer, artist, musician, performer, editor, graphic designer or arts educator.

"We’re thinking about how students can be art practitioners but also translate their interests into very marketable skills that also help enrich the community,” said Gillen.