Judi Ann Mason, playwright, screenwriter and television producer, will visit Claflin University on Thursday, Oct. 25, as guest speaker at the Sixth Language Arts Pedagogy Conference in Secondary and Postsecondary Institutions.

Ms. Mason will conduct morning and afternoon workshops from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. The conference, sponsored by the Department of English and Foreign Languages, will take place Oct. 25-26. The conference was designed to create a forum for language arts teachers in the community to share research, ideas and experiences in their profession.

This year’s workshop for educators and pre-service teachers will discuss using dramatic techniques for improved classroom management. Registration is free for educators and pre-service teachers. On Thursday evening, the conference program includes a reception for the members of the community who are interested in meeting Ms. Mason.  For information on attending this conference, please contact Dr. Mitali Wong at 803-535-5221.

Ms. Mason began her professional writing career while a student of drama at Grambling University when she won the Norman Lear Award for comedy writing from the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts for her play, “Livin’ Fat.” The following year she became the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival first ever winner of the Lorraine Hansberry Playwriting Award for her play, “A Star Ain’t Nothin’ but a Hole in Heaven.” She was one of the youngest playwrights ever to be produced Off-Broadway and has since written more than 50 plays and won numerous awards. Her plays are known for the strong interpersonal relationships between the characters she creates.

Her television writing career began when Norman Lear brought her to Hollywood to write for Good Times. She has also written episodes for Sanford and Son, A Different World, Beverly Hills 90210, I’ll Fly Away, American Gothic and the soap operas Generations and The Guiding Light. Ms. Mason is perhaps better known for her script adapted by Walt Disney Productions for Sister Act 2, Back in the Habit. Other film scripts include here Emmy and Ace Award nominated screenplay for Sophie and the Moonhanger, and work on major Disney animated features.