July 14, 2015
1st AD Rebecca Strickland and Associate Director Joyce A. Thomas have been re-elected as co-chairs of the DGA’s Eastern Diversity Steering Committee (EDSC). They are joined by newly elected co-chair, Director Jason Medina.
The EDSC represents the concerns of Guild members of African, Asian, Native American, Arab-Middle Eastern or Latino descent residing in the East. Committed to improving the employment opportunities, working conditions and the skills of ethnically diverse Guild members, the EDSC sponsors workshops, seminars, round-table discussions and networking events to showcase the talents of its members, recognize their contributions, and increase their visibility in the industry.
JASON MEDINA
A native of Brooklyn, New York, Jason Medina has worked as a News and Sports Director at WNBC, the NBC broadcast channel in New York; and WNJU, the Telemundo station in Fort Lee, New Jersey. Prior to becoming a Director, he also worked as an Associate Director at WNBC. He became a DGA member in 2012.
REBECCA STRICKLAND
Rebecca Strickland has worked as an Assistant Director on a variety of projects including the feature films Blade, Se7en and Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World; and the television series Limitless, Orange is the New Black and Blue Bloods. Currently in her second term as Co-Chair of the EDSC, Strickland has also been elected seven times as a member of the AD/UPM Council, East, where she has served two terms as 1st Vice Chairperson and one term as 2nd Vice Chairperson. She has been a member of the DGA since 1985.
JOYCE A. THOMAS
Now entering her second term as EDSC Co-Chair, Joyce Thomas has worked at CBS for 31 years, joining the Guild in 1996 as an Associate Director/Technical Director in the Broadcast Operations Department and currently working as an Associate Director/Technical Manager at the network’s Media Distribution Center in New York. Elected to the Eastern AD/SM/PA Council eight times, Thomas is currently in her second term as Council Chair, and has also served as 1st Vice Chairperson, 2nd Vice Chairperson, and Co-Chaired of the AD/SM/PA 75th Anniversary Sesame Street event. Thomas has also served as 2nd Alternate to the DGA National Board, and on three Network Agreement Negotiating Committees.