Assistant Professor of Dramatic Arts Mike Griffin receives the 2026 Arts in Education Award at the St. Catharines Arts Awards on June 18 at the FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre. (Photo credit: Bernardo and Nina Photography and Videography)
published Tuesday, June 23, 2026 in The Brock News | by Gillian Minaker
From established performers and educators to emerging artists, members of the Brock University community are making an impact in the local arts scene through their creative vision and dedication.
Brock graduates, faculty and guest artists were honoured as nominees across five categories for their creative talent and community engagement during the St. Catharines Arts Awards on June 18 at the FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre.
For Assistant Professor of Dramatic Arts (DART) Mike Griffin, recipient of the 2026 Arts in Education Award, teaching theatre is about inspiring the future leaders of artistic communities.
“As we train, we develop specialized skills, but we also create an appreciation for the thoughts, ideas and stories of others and for the beauty around us,” he said. “Theatre is about the exploration of humanity. The community that is developed through creating together and sharing that experience with an audience, that is one of the greatest gifts that we have.”
A theatre educator, director and playwright, Griffin teaches acting, directing, devising, movement, mask and puppetry at Brock’s Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts.
He has also written and directed several DART productions, including The Mysterious Mind of Molly McGillicuddy, which explored mild traumatic brain injury and related mental health through full-mask and physical theatre, and Escape to Ilkanor: A Fantasy Play in Nine Chapters, which imagined the fantasy genre through a whimsical and theatrical lens using puppetry and mask.
“I am so grateful to be recognized like this within my community amongst the many incredible artists, educators and supporters of the arts that were nominated,” he said. “What a rock star list of humans. I am inspired to go and see more art — there is so much beautiful work happening in this city.”
Comparative Literatures and Arts graduate Kosar Dakhilalian (MA ’23) received the 2026 Emerging Artists Award, nominated alongside Brock Studio Art grads Adam Wiebe (BA ’26), Jenn Judson (BA ’16) and Isabella Saranchuk (BA ’24).
A director and playwright with a background in acting and literature, Dakhilalian was a two-time art resident with Suitcase in Point Multi-arts Company. A passionate arts educator, Dakhilalian has also taught in DART and delivered workshops on drama-based practices in education at Brock’s Centre for Pedagogical Innovation.
Anne Carruthers (BA ’89, BEd ’95) and John Carruthers were awarded the Patron of the Arts Award, which recognizes an individual or business that has made a meaningful contribution to the arts in St. Catharines. The Carruthers were honoured for their generous support and advocacy for Niagara Artists Centre, extensive volunteer work and dedication to growing the cultural community in Niagara.
Multidisciplinary artist Nicole Joy-Fraser, a DART Walker Cultural Leader in 2025.
Multidisciplinary artist Nicole Joy-Fraser, one of DART’s Walker Cultural Leaders for 2025-26, received the 2026 Jury’s Pick Award. A proud bear clan matriarch who grew up in Mississauga with Euro-Settler, Tsa’tinée, Nehiyaw and Métis bloodlines from Horse Lake First Nation in Alberta, Joy-Fraser played the role of the Métis Nutcracker in DART’s 2025 mainstage production.
Nominees from the Brock arts community for the 2026 St. Catharines Arts Awards include:
- 2026 Arts in Education Award — Mike Griffin, Assistant Professor of Dramatic Arts
- 2026 Emerging Artist Award — Adam Wiebe (BA ’26), Studio Art graduate
- 2026 Emerging Artist Award — Kosar Dakhilalian (MA ’23), Studies in Comparative Literatures and Arts graduate
- 2026 Emerging Artist Award — Jenn Judson (BA ’16), Studio Art graduate
- 2026 Emerging Artist Award — Isabella Saranchuk (BA ’24), Studio Art graduate
- 2026 Making a Difference Award — Skye Rogers/retrograde: dance in motion (ARCS ’22, Certificate in Arts and Culture Studies)
- 2026 Patron of the Arts Awards — Anne Carruthers (BA ’89, BEd ’95), Psychology and Fine Arts, Inservice Education graduate
- 2026 Jury’s Pick Award — Nicole Joy-Fraser, Dramatic Arts 2025 Walker Cultural Leader
A full list of this year’s award recipients is available on the City of St. Catharines website.
