Roxanne Schroeder-Arce is a teacher, scholar, administrator, arts advocate, playwright, and director. She joined the faculty at the University of Texas Department of Theatre and Dance in 2010 and she now also serves as the Associate Dean of UTeach Fine Arts, the College of Fine Art’s teacher preparation program and as Associate Professor of Theatre Education. Her theatre practice is integral to her pedagogy. Schroeder-Arce's bilingual plays have been presented to children and families in theatres around the United States. Her plays Señora Tortuga, Legend of the Poinsettia, Sangre de un Ángel, Mariachi Girl and Yana Wana’s Legend of the Bluebonnet (co-authored with María F. Rocha) are available through Dramatic Publishing. Her newest work, Lyric and the Keys, with music and lyrics by Jenn Hartmann Luck, premiered at the Magik Theatre in September, 2024. Professor Schroeder-Arce's research interests include culturally responsive theatre education and Latino/a/x theatre for young audiences related to teacher training. She has published articles in journals such as Youth Theatre Journal, TYA Today, Theatre Topics, and Gestos. She has taught workshops on issues of diversity in theatre for young audiences and culturally responsive teaching artistry throughout the Americas and beyond.
As a White, non-Hispanic scholar/practitioner deeply engaged in Latinx and Indigenous theatre communities, Schroeder-Arce constantly asks questions of herself and others about how and why she does her work— in areas of teaching, scholarship, and service. She currently serves on the board of Teatro Vivo and the steering committee of the Latinx Theatre Commons of Howlround. She is also a non-Indigenous member of the Board of Elders of the Indigenous Cultures Institute in San Marcos. In addition, she serves on the Executive Committee of the Center for Mexican American Studies at UT and is an affiliate faculty member for CMAS, NAIS, and LLILAS.
Professor Schroeder-Arce has served as a board member of the American Alliance for Theatre and Education and Theatre for Young Audiences/USA. She was the U.S. representative to the NEXT program through TYA/USA and ASSITEJ. She is a cadre member of the Center for Education and the Arts and she served on the committee that wrote the new Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for Theatre K-12. She is active in the Texas Educational Theatre Association, the American Society for Theatre Research, and the International Theatre for Young Audiences Research Network. Schroeder-Arce has received the Ann Flagg Multicultural Award from the American Alliance for Theatre and Education and the Higher Education Teacher of the Year Award from the Texas Educational Theatre Association.
Prior to her work at UT Austin, Professor Schroeder-Arce served as an assistant professor of theatre education at Emerson College in Boston and California State University Fresno. Professor Schroeder-Arce received her M.F.A. in Drama and Theatre for Youth from the University of Texas at Austin and her B.S. degree and teaching credential from Emerson College. Before her university-level appointments, Professor Schroeder-Arce taught high school theatre both in Laredo and Austin, Texas for a total of six years. She also served for several years as artistic and education director of Teatro Humanidad, a bilingual theatre company in Austin. A product of Upward Bound and a first-generation college student, she taught performing arts for the Keene State College Upward Bound program. Professor Schroeder-Arce has led professional development programs with teachers throughout the U.S. and in other countries such as Costa Rica, Korea, and Switzerland. She has worked with secondary school students through numerous projects and has taught drama at multiple elementary and middle schools throughout the US. She also served as an apprentice at the Dramashop Program at Seattle Children's Theatre.