UWM Theatre Department

Adolphus Ambrose Ward was born in Colt, Arkansas on February 22, 1935. He was an actor, director, author, and educator who lived his life defying the odds and living life on the edge. As a child, he survived a three-year battle with kidney failure, and as a young man, he survived the Korean War, serving as a sergeant in the US Marine Corps.

The GI Bill provided Mr. Ward the opportunity to attend UWM where he earned a BS in Education and an MS in Educational Leadership. Mr. Ward also taught at UWM from 1997 to 2001. This experience led him to pursue his dream to work full-time in theatre. Mr. Ward achieved a career of over 50 years, which took him from Milwaukee to Los Angeles. Wherever he worked, Mr. Ward mentored the actors he met at the numerous theatres. Mr. Ward’s career has been recognized with awards from the Beverly Hills NAACP, Los Angeles Stage Alliance, and the New York Drama Critic’s Circle. In addition to his theatre, television, and film career, Mr. Ward had also written and published four novels.

Adolphus had step and natural children who were inspired by his work in the theatre and subsequently pursued theatre careers of their own. Adolphus Ward transitioned on November 6, 2021, in Reseda, California.

In honor of University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee alumnus and former faculty member, Adolphus Ambrose Ward, the Theatre Department has established a scholarship for incoming BIPOC freshmen who major in Theatre at the Peck School of the Arts. The scholarship is renewable for up to four years for students who continue to meet specified criteria. To support the scholarship, go to: www.give.uwm.edu/WardTheatreScholarship