Martha Diaz is a Colombian-American community organizer, media producer, archivist, curator, and social entrepreneur.

Martha Diaz
Born (1969-07-29) July 29, 1969 (age 55)
NationalityColombian-American
Occupation(s)Founder, Hip-Hop Education Center
Known forCommunity Organizer, Media Producer, Archivist, Curator, Educator, Social Entrepreneur

Career

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Diaz started her career as an intern working for Ted Demme on the cable show Yo! MTV Raps.[1] Diaz has associate produced several documentaries including, Black August directed by Dream Hampton, Where My Ladies At? directed by Leba Haber-Rubinoff, and Nas: Time Is Illmatic directed by One9.[2][3] In 2002, Diaz founded the H2O International Film Festival with a dozen filmmakers, entertainment industry professionals, activist, and artists.[4][5]

Diaz has been a guest curator at NJ Performing Arts Center,[6] the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture - New York Public Library,[7][8] Museum of the Moving Image,[9] and the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences.[10]

Diaz was a part-time professor at New York University's Gallatin School from 2011 to 2015.[11][12]

Diaz in collaboration with Marcella Runell Hall created the "Hip-Hop Education Guidebook: Volume 1", a comprehensive collection of lesson plans and resources that educators can use to integrate hip-hop into their classroom curriculum. The book concept was inspired by Diaz, who founded and curated the Hip-Hop Education Summit with Patricia Wang from 2003 to 2005. In 2010, Diaz formed the Hip-Hop Education Center (H2ED) to formalize and unify the field of hip-hop based education.[13][14][15]

Diaz conducted the first national study on hip-hop education programs and initiatives in partnership with Pedro Noguera and Edward Fergus.[16] Diaz was a fellow at the Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation[17] at the National Museum of American History (Smithsonian Institution). In 2008, Diaz was the recipient of the Catherine B. Reynolds Fellowship in Social Entrepreneurship.[18] In September 2014, Diaz was selected as a Community Scholar at Columbia University.[19]

Diaz served as chair and executive director of the Hip-Hop Association, a community building 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. The Hip-Hop Association received a Union Square Arts Award, which recognizes the central leadership role played by arts and culture in providing educational opportunities for young people, building collaborations and promoting social change.[20]

In 2017, Diaz was selected as a Nasir Jones Fellow at The Hiphop Archive and Research Institute in The Hutchins Center for African and African American Research at Harvard University.[21] She was also invited to be a 2020 Civic Media Fellow at the Annenberg Innovation Lab at the University of California.[22]

References

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  1. ^ Feministing: Lady of Hip-Hop
  2. ^ Tribeca Film Festival 2014
  3. ^ ‘Nas: Time is Illmatic’ Team Talks Expanding 20-Year Hip-Hop Legacy - Black Enterprise October 6, 2014
  4. ^ N.Y. Film Festival Highlights Hip-Hop - Billboard Nov 16, 2002
  5. ^ Seven Who Invent a Better Future - 2010
  6. ^ Alternate Routes Hip Hop Festival
  7. ^ Higher Learning: Using Hip-Hop Education to Transform Schools and Communities
  8. ^ "Hip-Hop Education Think Tank III: Legacy Building - Cultivating a Global Cipher from the Streets to the Classroom".
  9. ^ "Museum of the Moving Image - Programs - Made You Look: Documenting the Art, History, Power, and Politics of Hip-Hop Culture".
  10. ^ Hip Hop Education Center CEO Martha Diaz & The Academy’s Patrick Harrison Talk New Film - Ebony Mag May 24, 2017
  11. ^ "Social Enterprising: Redefining Social Change in the 21st Century > Courses > Academics > NYU Gallatin".
  12. ^ "Hip-Hop Trails: Tracing and Rediscovering the Origins and Legacy of Hip-Hop Culture > Courses > Academics > NYU Gallatin".
  13. ^ Taking back the mic: Hip-hop as a STEM learning tool - Washington Post December 14, 2012
  14. ^ 3 life skills students can learn from hip-hop and technology - Amplify
  15. ^ Hip-Hop Education Reaches Youth in Low-Income - Good News Planet TV October 31, 2011
  16. ^ Teachers Use Hip Hop to Engage Students By Jason Koebler
  17. ^ Hip-Hop, the Collaborations Don't Stop
  18. ^ http://www.nyu.edu/reynolds/grad/alumni_html/new08_html/diaz.html Catherine B. Reynolds Fellowship
  19. ^ http://gca.columbia.edu/columbia-community-scholars-program-cohort-ii Columbia University Community Scholar
  20. ^ "Home".
  21. ^ "Fall Colloquium with 2017 Nasir Jones Hiphop Fellow Martha Diaz". 5 October 2017.
  22. ^ "Martha Diaz".
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