José Casas is a playwright and Assistant Professor of Playwriting in the Department of Theatre and Dance at the University of Michigan. He is the Resident Playwright at Rising Youth Theatre and Spinning Dot Theatre. He is a Board Member of The Children’s Theatre Foundation and Spinning Dot Theatre. He is a member of The American Alliance of Theatre and Education and The Dramatists Guild.  He has a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre Arts from the University of California, Santa Barba, a Master of Arts in Theatre Arts from California State University, Los Angeles and a Master of Fine Arts in Playwriting from Arizona State. His plays include la rosa grows beyond the wall, all brown all chingon, and 14. His plays, la ofrenda and somebody’s children received both the Bonderman National Playwriting for Youth Award (2005, 2009) and the AATE Distinguished Play Award (2007, 2010). His published plays include la ofrenda, 14 and somebody’s children. His next project is a Documenatry Theatre piece titled FLINT,, mi.