Get to Know …
Name:- Dennis Morimoto
- Title:
- Director of the School of Art & Design
- College:
- Performing and Visual Arts
- Program:
- School of Art & Design
- Years Teaching:
- 44 years (40+ at UNC)
- Degrees:
- B.A. in Industrial Education, Graphic Arts and Geography, UNC.
- M.A. in Industrial Education, Graphic Arts and Educational Media, UNC.
- Ed.D in Secondary Education/Curriculum Development, Industrial Technology Education, Arizona State University.
- Areas of expertise/Research interests:
- Photographic imaging and curriculum development in those areas; Verbal/nonverbal Communication; Multi-media development; Traditional and contemporary Imaging procedures and techniques; Printing and publishing. Personal agenda includes exhibitions of work in local and regional venues as well as exclusive photographic contributions, with selected photo imaging students,
- You might not know that I …
- have collected recordings of various music and created photographic images for over 50 years.
- When I let my hair down, I can be found …
- listening to music, seeking images for photographs, making desserts, watching cooking shows, and visiting art exhibitions and museums.
- My welcome-to-teaching moment that I’ll never forget was …
- over 45 years ago when many of my students in my first class were much older than I was.
- I chose UNC because …
- because of my undergraduate years, I was familiar with the program I was building and because of the strong tradition and reputation of the university.
- Confucius would say my teaching philosophy is …
- “Look before you leap”. Think things out before you move ahead. It costs less to plan more, so be very precise and research thoroughly. ….“Being strict with oneself rarely fails”.
- If I’m not teaching a class, or in my office, you can find me on campus at …
- I have two offices, so if I can’t be found in either office, I must be in meetings, appointments, or student/faculty reviews.
- I cannot live without …
- the support from family and friends; all of the arts; music, art and performance, sports, audio/video and photographic activities.
- If I hadn’t become a teacher, I would be a …
- a professional artist of some kind, whether it be a photographer or a musician. Frankly, my musical talent was so poor that I was a better listener, which is probably the reason why I appreciate the talents of so many different performers and their music. I would have looked at some of the science areas and could have probably been an engineer, architect, or graphic designer.
- Yearbook quote (advice you like to give to students or best advice you’ve received)
- From my high school English teacher: "It doesn’t matter what you choose to be, but work to be the best you can be."
- Links:
- University spotlight
- Faculty Web page
- Professional activity
