Kate Torcom ’12

With her father serving in the U.S. Air Force, Kate Torcom ’12 didn’t follow a traditional path to Southern Oregon University. When he was offered the rare opportunity to choose his next duty station, he selected Kingsley Field in Klamath Falls—drawn by stories of Oregon’s natural beauty passed down from his mother. Eventually, the family relocated from the Chicago area and settled in Redmond.

Though Torcom always knew she wanted to pursue higher education, she wasn’t sure where—until her father suggested a trip to Ashland. Familiar with the region from his time in Klamath Falls, he encouraged her to explore the Oregon Shakespeare Festival (OSF), a world-renowned theatre company, and take a closer look at what SOU had to offer.

“We didn’t even have a campus tour scheduled,” Torcom recalls. “But the theatre faculty dropped everything to welcome us. It was amazing customer service. I knew right then that SOU—and the theatre program—was my future.”

Torcom soon joined SOU’s highly competitive bachelor of fine arts program, where only 12 students were selected each year to perform. But early in her college experience, tragedy struck—her father passed away during Thanksgiving break of her first year.

“My instructors showed such compassion,” she said. “They told me not to come back until winter term. Every single teacher had my back. They made sure I stayed in school—it was such a beautiful example of care and support.”

In the years that followed, new faculty brought fresh opportunities and mentorship. One of those mentors was Scott Kaiser, a prominent voice and text coach with OSF. Through that connection—and her growing confidence as a performer—Torcom earned a spot acting with the company at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival during her senior year. While at SOU, she also served as a teaching assistant in the acting classes and worked in OSF’s education department.

Her final SOU production took place in the fall of 2011, and she graduated the following spring with a bachelor of fine arts degree.

After staying on with OSF through the fall season, Torcom received a phone call that would shift her path again. Her former high school principal in Redmond reached out with a job opportunity. After careful reflection, she returned to Central Oregon in 2014 to begin a new chapter as an educator.

Now, ten years later, Torcom has built a thriving theatre program at Redmond Proficiency Academy (RPA), a public, tuition-free charter school. Hundreds of students have come through RPA Theatre under her leadership, and each year she brings many of them back to Ashland to attend OSF performances—a full-circle tradition that honors her roots.

“RPA Theatre has built a strong national reputation,” Torcom said. “And having attended one of the premier theatre universities in the West—just steps from the Oregon Shakespeare Festival—it’s an honor to keep that connection going. It’s a full-circle kind of joy.”

“Building one of the nation’s leading theatre programs at a school dedicated to revolutionizing education has been one of the great honors of my life. My success as a theatre educator at RPA is a direct result of the invaluable tools and insights I gained at SOU. I will always be deeply grateful to the faculty there for truly seeing me.”

Learn More:  Redmond Proficiency Academy