Bio Shannon is primarily a healer through storytelling. As one of the top arts educators in Milwaukee for over two decades, she has served and facilitated healing through theatre, performance, myths, and personal narratives for thousands of students ranging from kindergarten to continuing education learners. She has a B.A. in Writing and Philosophy from Mount Mary University, WI, and a M.A./ Ph.D. in Mythological Studies with an emphasis in Depth Psychology from Pacifica Graduate Institute, CA where she taught “The Healing Power of Creativity.” She is a professor of world mythologies and environmental humanities at Oakton Community College, IL and teaches mythology and anthropology at Northern Vermont University Online. Her focus is on creativity returning to right relationship with self, community, and the Natural World. She apprenticed herself to a Bodawedme (Potawatomi) medicine man when she was 16 years old, and was adopted by him as his daughter into the Bear Clan. She has walked the medicine path ever since, specializing in indigenous wisdom and healing practices. She is a Standing Rock water protector and co-founded Water Protectors of Milwaukee, where she continues to advocate for environmental justice for water. She has studied Shamanism and plant medicine in Peru, is a member of the Order of Bards, Ovates, and Druids, and is an ordained minister/ceremonialist who has performed weddings, baby blessings, and end-of-life grief support.
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I hold a doctorate in Mythological Studies with an emphasis in Depth Psychology from Pacifica Graduate Institute, CA. Pacifica’s Mythological Studies program, a unique interdisciplinary humanities program, is the only doctoral program in the country that investigates mythologies and cultural traditions through the lenses of religious studies, literature, and depth psychology. I was the second recipient of the Christine Downing Dissertation Fellowship Award at OPUS Archives in 2013/14 which allowed me to work with the personal archives of Joseph Campbell, James Hillman, Christine Downing, Jane Hollister Wheelwright, and Marion Woodman when completing my doctoral research.
I am certified in Ecopsychology from Pacifica, Trauma -Informed Care from De Paul University, and as a 200hr Yoga Teacher, and Social and Emotional Learning Facilitator through Breathe For Change. It is from this blended humanities perspective and from my deep roots in Indigenous spirituality that I approach my work and teach World Mythologies at Oakton Community College in Des Plaines, IL, where I have served on the advisory council of the Environmental Studies Concentration since it began in 2016. I co-lead our Conscious Ambassadors of Trauma-Informed Care group on campus. I also am a member of the Elevating Indigenous Voices at Oakton working group to increase connections between the college and the Indigenous Peoples of the Greater Chicago area. I helped co-found Holding Space, a healing arts collective in St Francis, WI. Currently, I am currently working on a new collaboration with SomAlchemy.org. I continue to work as a freelance actor and director, and am a storytelling coach through Ex Fabula. |
Collaborations
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Milwaukee Repertory Theater
IInTandem Theater Next Act Theatre First Stage Children's Theater Milwaukee Chamber Theatre Bunny Gumbo Theatre Waukesha Civic Theater Milwaukee Shakespeare Co. |
Mark G.E.:
Joyfarm Internal Combustion Theatre Kenosha Civil War Museum, Kenosha WI Dark Goddess Festival, Denver CO. |