Carin Silkaitis

Carin Silkaitis (They/Them) is a non-binary Dean of Arts and Sciences in the University of Alaska system and a well-known activist and advocate for gender equity and corporate well-being. Carin is an expert on current issues plaguing higher education and they have spent years training corporations how to create more inclusive spaces for executives and clients through a unique combination of improvisation, bystander work and antiracism training.

Whether a corporate retreat, company meeting, womenʼs conference, higher education retreat or event, Carin's expertise and story-telling ability delights audiences as they impart relevant information and cutting-edge training with aplomb, humor, and wit. Carinʼs years as an actor and improviser in Chicago serve them well as they speak about the contemporary issues that are important to the success and well-being of your community.

Prior to serving as the Dean of the School of Arts, Sciences and Business at the University of Alaska Southeast: Carin has been the Artistic Director of an Equity Theatre Company in Chicago, a Department Chair of Theatre at a large non-profit private institution, a working actor and director in Chicago, a Professor of Theatre and Gender and Sexuality Studies, the lead educator of the Green Dot Technique (a bystander training technique that eradicates power-based personal violence), a Title IX Investigator – after receiving Level 1 and Level 2 Certified Civil Rights Investigator training through ATIXA, and a Faculty Fellow serving on the Columbia College Chicagoʼs Antiracism Transformation Team (after spending a year training with Crossroads Antiracism in Chicago). Carin has led thousands of people through antiracism and bystander trainings, and they have helped dozens of work teams to become more efficient and productive.

Carin has also been published in scholarly journals on embodied dramaturgy/place-based theatre and as a freelance writer in journals and magazines on breast cancer/breast reconstruction, and the BRCA1+ gene diagnosis process.

In addition to their public speaking and corporate training/consulting, Carin is still a SAG/AFTRA, AEA actor who worked for many years with Gray Talent Group in Chicago. Now that they are living in Alaska, they spend time coaching actors on the business and working with them on their on-camera auditions. Carin’s notable TV/Film credits include: Co-Star on EMPIRE (FOX), CHICAGO FIRE (NBC) & THE RED LINE (CBS), Nurse in the SAG Feature UNEXPECTED (currently on Amazon Prime Video), and Joy in the award-winning short BEING HERE (winner - Best Supporting Performer, Berkshire Short Film Fest). Carin has also appeared in numerous commercials and industrials, and they have lent their talents to many voiceovers and print gigs.

Carinʼs work in advocacy, inclusivity and well-being has a fresh/unique perspective because they have their clients practice this work during their trainings. Donʼt just talk about it – practice it.