Professor of Theatre and Dance Thomas F. Nevins has left his teaching position at UWSP. He came to the university in 1979 after teaching at Quincy University, Villanova University and Vanguard Schools in Pennsylvania.

Nevins� ancestors hailed from County Cork, where his grandfather was a locksmith. The professor and his wife visited the west coast of Ireland about 15 years ago and Nevins, who said he received the gift of gab from his father, got to buss the famous stone at Blarney Castle. When the couple returned to Stevens Point, the experience inspired him to direct "Playboy of the Western World," an Irish comedy set during a period known as the "Irish Renaissance."

Nevins coached his students in the Irish dialect, one of 16 different speech patterns he perfected and taught over the years. He attributes his abilities with language to his upbringing in an ethnically mixed, working-class neighborhood in Chicago. "We played in the streets in that vital and exiting place from dawn until dark," he said.

In the early 80s, Nevins completed his original script and staged the UWSP premiere of "Poverello," a play about St. Francis of Assisi. In 1983 his production of "The Crucible" was chosen for regional competition by the American College Theatre Association. Altogether, he has directed more than 100 plays during his career. Nevins recalled one of his favorite playwrights was Bertolt Brecht because of the dramatist�s earthiness and vivid characters. Another favorite was Sidney Kingsley, Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright with whom Nevins worked in New York City.

Earlier in Nevins career, after studying improvisation with Paul Sills whose mother created improvisational movement for the stage, the professor developed a class in improvisation at UWSP. He studied fencing with a professional instructor, enabling him to pass along combat techniques to his students in addition to teaching courses such as acting and theatre history. A favorite avocation was directing community theatre productions.

He is proud that several of his former students have established successful careers in show business. "They work steady and keep bread on the table," he said.

Nevins was educated at Quincy University, Villanova and Loyola of New Orleans. His master�s thesis on the history of the Walnut Street Theater in Philadelphia is entered into the Library of Congress. In the late 1970s, Nevins was recognized for excellence in teaching by the Danforth Foundation.

During retirement, Nevins and his wife, Jane, plan to continue to live in Stevens Point and spend time with three grown children and three grandchildren in Illinois and Rhode Island. Nevins intends to maintain an active interest in theatre, keep up extended family connections, read and continue to learn.

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