Recently the Menomonee Club, which has been improving urban life for children on Chicago’s north side for almost sixty years, spent a week in April focusing on the theme “Art matters to me” in all their arts programming. The Club offers a mix of supervised team sports, recreational, and social programs for kids ages 3 through 18, as well as select programs for adults. According to their website, the not-for-profit Menomonee Club for Boys and Girls is “dedicated to providing children from diverse backgrounds with quality recreation and enrichment activities that foster personal growth and skill development.”
Thanks to Performing Arts Coordinator, Lauren Warnecke, children in their dance program were given the opportunity to submit statements and drawings completing the thought, “Dance matters because….” The wonderful sample below was selected for publishing on Dance Advantage. I am happy to share these with you during National Dance Week! I hope you’ve taken some time during this busy month of arts advocacy to celebrate at your own studios!
Announcement
You may have recognized Lauren Warnecke’s name from a recent guest post, Watching Versus Doing In Dance Education. Lauren received dance training at Barat College, holds a BA in Dance from Columbia College Chicago and an MS in Kinesiology from the University of Illinois-Chicago. She has more than ten years of teaching experience, and is currently seeking a teacher’s certification through the Cecchetti Council of America, which you’ll read more about tomorrow on the blog!
A few months ago, after our paths crossed online, I took some time to look at Lauren’s website, Art Intercepts. As a body-mechanic wanna-be 🙂 I was drawn to her knowledge of both dance and kinesiology and the detailed way in which she presented the information. I discovered that Art Intercepts is a project developed during her graduate work which Lauren fortunately continued and seeks to expand. With goals of improving dance education, teaching practices, and overall health and wellness, I feel Lauren’s work and experience are a good fit for Dance Advantage. And so, Lauren will continue “bridging the gap between experience and evidence” in a regular column here. I couldn’t be more thrilled to have her aboard!
Complete your own “Dance matters because…” statement in the comments below!
And while you are in that zone, take a moment to reflect on the great impact you make as someone in the dance community, and the responsibility we all have to ensure that others receive the same opportunities to enjoy and experience dance.
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Nichelle Suzanne is a writer specializing in dance and online content. She is also a dance instructor with over 20 years experience teaching in dance studios, community programs, and colleges. She began Dance Advantage in 2008, equipped with a passion for movement education and an intuitive sense that a blog could bring dancers together. As a Houston-based dance writer, Nichelle covers dance performance for Dance Source Houston, Arts+Culture Texas, and other publications. She is a leader in social media within the dance community and has presented on blogging for dance organizations, including Dance/USA. Nichelle provides web consulting and writing services for dancers, dance schools and studios, and those beyond the dance world. Read Nichelle’s posts.
