John Michael Sefel, M.F.A., Ph.D.

Dr. John Michael Sefel (“Dr. John”) is a theatre and speech educator, director, and scholar whose work focuses on theatre history, disability studies, and Yiddish immigrant theatre. He has taught at Ohio State University, Baylor University, Cowley College, and Chester College of New England, and has also served as a Fellow with the Melton Center for Jewish Studies and as a state-wide curriculum project lead for the Ohio History Connection. He now serves as the head of Theatre at Henry Ford College.

He holds a Ph.D. in Theatre History and Literature, a Graduate Interdisciplinary Specialization (G.I.S.) in Disability Studies, and an M.F.A. in Theatrical Directing. At HFC, he teaches Acting, Theatre Literature, Theatre History, and Special Topics courses, directs most mainstage productions, and oversees the seasonal performance calendar. He also teaches within the Speech and Communication Department and plays a key role in developing and coordinating HFC Nursing’s Standardized Patient training initiative.

His professional credits include film casting, dramaturgy, playwriting, and directing nearly 100 productions, with work presented in New York City, Boston, the Central Texas Opera Festival, and the Sundance Film Festival. His scholarship has been published by Routledge, Macmillan, the New England Theatre Journal, and other academic presses. His recent book, At the Intersection of Disability and Drama, was nominated for the Outstanding Book award by the Association for Theatre in Higher Education.