Penn State Beaver invites the public to attend a free presentation by Deo Mwano, speaker, multicultural activist, and choreographer, Tuesday, Feb. 25, 4:30 p.m., in the campus Student Union Building auditorium. A question and answer session with Mwano will follow the program.
At the age of seven, Mwano witnessed the assassination of his father in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In danger of facing their own death, he, his mother, and three brothers escaped to the United States in 2000. Once here, he and his brothers connected with people through music and dance and became so professional that they all appeared on ABC TV’s “Dancing with the Stars.”
Mwano’s choreography has been performed in South America, Europe, Africa, and Asia through Youth with a Mission Performing Arts Program. He has also worked with the Pakistani Educational Leadership Institute by teaching dance and serving as a community advisor.
Funding support for the program is provided by the Beaver campus Student Activity Fee and the Penn State Student Activities Cultural Grant.
Mwano has mentored and been a dance instructor for Bringing Refugees, Immigrants and Neighbors Gently into Tomorrow. He was a guest speaker on New Hampshire Public Radio’s “Word of Mouth” program speaking on behalf of the refugee community and was a member of the panel discussion focused on the documentary, “Uprooted.” He was also a guest speaker at the TEDxAmoskeagMillyard hosted by Southern New Hampshire University. He currently works as a learning coach team leader for College For America at Southern New Hampshire University.
Mwano holds a master’s degree in business administration and strategic leadership, and a bachelor’s degree in political science, history, and international relations from New England College.
For information, visit Mwano’s website at http://www.deomwano.com, or contact Jen Toof, Beaver campus coordinator of student activities and residence life, at jlt46@psu.edu or 724-773-3947.