Catherine Horta-Hayden

Catherine Horta-Hayden is Assistant Provost for Academic Affairs at Towson University in Towson, Maryland. She is Cuban-American, born and raised in Miami, Florida where she began her ballet training with Ballet Etudes of South Florida. She has acquired a repertoire which includes leading roles in major ballets. She received her Bachelors in Fine Arts from Florida International University and her Masters in Fine Arts from Florida State University.

She began as an Assistant Proffesor in the Department of Dance at Towson University in 2000 and obtained promotion to Associate Professor and tenure in 2006 while becoming a mother twice, directing the Towson University Dance Company, and contributing greatly to the Hispanic Commuiity in Baltimore. She has been invited to teach Master classes and choreograph through out the U.S. and Internationally. In 2004, Mrs. Horta-Hayden accepted an invitation to visit the National Ballet School of Cuba and conduct research on its renowned teaching methodology.

She authored and directed the project "Cuban Dance; Enhancing the Cultural Fabric of Baltimore", which brought 600 Baltimore County middle school youth and teachers to Towson University. The project was designed to increase awareness of Afro Cuban history, culture, music and dance, by inviting the participants to attend a live performance and have direct interaction with the resident Company. The project provided a framework for Baltimore County teachers to generate discussion and thought around a performance’s Cultural Context, Artistic Perception, Aesthetic Value, Creative Expression, and Connections to the World, Art, and Self through an Artistic Analysis. She received numerous grants in support of this project.

Mrs. Horta-Hayden currently serves as a Board Member for the International Council of Researchers in Pedagogical Studies of Ballet in Higher Education (CORPS), the only professional organization of its kind, dedicated to the development, exploration, and advancement of ballet in higher education. Nationallly, she has served as a panelist and expert on numerous Arts committees. She was appointed by the County Executive to serve on the Baltimore County Commission for Women and is currently the only Latina on this Commission.

According to sources, as Assistant Provost, Mrs. Horta-Hayden has become the first artist and women of color to serve in this capacity at Towson University, she is the first Latina in the state of Maryland to occupy this position in the University System of Maryland, and currently, the only Dance Educator/Professional to have achieved this level of Administration in Higher Education.

In addition, she is serving as an Honorary Advisory Board Member for a new Non-Profit organization, Mision Latina, Inc, www.lamisionlatina.org .

Gracias!