Child of Apartheid Film Screening

Stephen Allcock, Film Director

Born in England, Stephen Allcock has spent much of his life traveling and working in various fields from security to cinematography, factory production lines to project management, and pet retail to vice-chair of Ubuntu Design Group. At 26 years of age, Allcock attained a BFA in Documentary Film from Andrews University in the USA; during the course of his studies, he worked on various documentaries and film productions that took him across the globe. His first film, The Hugs Project, took the prize for Best Short Documentary at the 2017 SonScreen Film Festival. Since then, he has spent two and a half years producing his graduating piece, Child of Apartheid.

Danei Cesario is the 333rd Black woman in American history to earn her architectural license. She is an internationally licensed architect, project manager, and public speaker. Cesario is a Project Manager at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), overseeing dynamic mixed-use development and healthcare projects. Her passion for architecture and advocacy, as well as her diverse experiences in healthcare, equity, and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have led her to become a sought-after speaker, with engagements at numerous national and international conferences and private-sector events, including the United Nations, SXSW, Royal Institute of British Architects, the AIA Conference on Architecture, and the New York Building Congress. Cesario served as chair of the AIANY Diversity & Inclusion Committee for over five years. Currently, she serves on the AIA New York State Board (representing nearly 10,000 members across 13 chapters), the Consortium for Sustainable Urbanization, and the AIANY Nominating Committee. She is an ambassador to organizations vested in equity, diversity and inclusion including Beverly Willis Architecture Foundation, Stephen Lawrence Charitable Trust, and nycobaNOMA Executive Board. Cesario is dedicated to fostering mentorship, sponsorship, and leadership within the design community. She founded WALLEN + daub to expand on these principles.

Wandile Mthiyane is an Obama Leader, dynamic speaker, equity and inclusion thought leader, adjunct professor, and architect who holds a master’s in architecture from Andrews University in Michigan. He is a Resolution Fellow, One Young World ambassador, and the CEO of social impact architecture firm Ubuntu Design Group, the Anti-Racist Hotdog, and Ubuntu Architecture Summer Abroad Design Justice school. As a result of his upbringing and life experiences, dversity and inclusion are core themes for Mthiyane in serving his purpose as an architect and DEI guide. He was born during apartheid South Africa, attended high school in Zimbabwe, and then went on to complete his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in architecture at the most ethnically diverse university in the United States: Andrews University in the state of Michigan. These diverse experiences around the world have shaped his understanding of the different environments around him and the importance of inclusion, which embraces the cultural roots that different communities are drawn to.

Stephen Erich is a chaplain, activist, and business strategist. He serves as a spiritual life advisor at Columbia and NYU where he co-chairs a committee for anti-racism as a spiritual practice. He holds an MA in Religion from Yale Divinity School, where he organized an interfaith conference on mass incarceration and edited the Yale Journal of International Affairs. He also holds an MBA from Andrews University, where he has lectured on accounting and economics in addition to organizing multiple summits on social issues. Erich has spoken on religion and human rights in over five countries and 15 U.S. states.

Michael Nixon is the Vice President for University Culture & Inclusion and Chief Diversity Officer at Andrews University. He began this work in 2017 at the age of 29 and is the first person to serve in this position at Andrews. Nixon is also an Adjunct Professor in the History & Political Science Department, where he also advises pre-law students. Nixon also serves as the Director of the Andrews University TRHT Campus Center. Currently, he is also pursuing a PhD in Studies in Higher Education with a Specialization in Diversity, Equity & Inclusion at the University of Kentucky. Prior to this work, Nixon served as the Legal Coordinator for the Fair Housing Justice Center in New York City. He has a law degree from the John Marshall Law School (JMLS) in Chicago, Illinois, and a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Andrews University. In his free time, he enjoys spending lots of time with his six-year-old daughter Noa Elise Nixon, who is the light of his life.

Kathryn Thiele is a licensed architect with over ten years experience in design-build, ground-up construction for high-rise residential and mixed use buildings. Thiele is not only an architect, designe,r and project manager, she’s a passionate and resourceful entrepreneur. During the pandemic, she saw the supply chain issues as an opportunity to bring technology and transparency into the real estate development and construction industry. In response, she founded Buildstock, a company that helps developers procure building material easily, reliably and affordably. Thiele is extremely active in her community at the local and national level. Throughout the years, she has led community service efforts, created scholarships, developed a mentorship program, hosted symposia, and arranged networking events. She was also inducted into the Beverly Willis Architecture Foundation’s Emerging Leaders Program. Thiele is a certified instructor for the Architect Licensing Community and teaches ARE Bootcamps, workshops, and guest lectures at Cornell University.