Project Details
Hiring Manager: Dr. Elizabeth McPherson, Professor, Theatre and Dance, Dean’s Office, College of the Arts
Total Hours: 80
Project Stipend: $2000
Project Overview
With the new university-wide grid structure that was put into place for the Spring of 2025, our students no longer had required technique classes on Fridays. By moving our Health and Wellness course (DNCE131) to Fridays, we were able to establish a class time on Fridays for students to experience technical dance training while at the same time be exposed to types of dance classes they do not normally receive as part of the regular schedule. This new plan, which we have titled Fabulous Fun Fridays, also includes specific classes on Wellness, such as Yoga, Injury Care, and Pilates. While the Head of Dance scheduled the teachers and classes for the Spring of 2025 because of the short time for planning, having support for this initiative for Fall 2025 would be beneficial in terms of meeting a larger vision, responding to student needs and desires, and promoting each individual guest teacher and their classes. Working on this project would also prepare a graduate student for some of the types of work necessary in a dance program.
Project Goals and Objectives
- Collect student data, compile data, and discuss results with the Head of Dance regarding the impact of the first semester (Spring 2025) of Fabulous Fun Fridays.
- Collect student suggestions for teachers for Fabulous Fun Fridays for Fall 2025.
- Schedule teachers for Fabulous Fun Fridays Fall 2025, to include a wide range of dance styles.
- Communicate with teachers to confirm their schedules and send to the Department Administrator for payment processing
- Create the overview schedule grid for Fabulous Fun Fridays Fall 2025.
- Create a simple booklet with bios and headshots for each teacher and include types of classes they will teach. This can be used to promote the classes in the Fall 2025 semester.
- Coordinate with the Dance Musician coordinator to make sure there are musicians for all of the classes that require them.
- Make suggestions for teachers for Fabulous Fun Fridays for Spring 2026.
Methods
- Creation of survey.
- Compilation of data.
- Discussions with the Head of Dance.
- Email communication with students and teachers through Canvas and Gmail.
- Development of simple booklet with bios and headshots of teachers which will be disseminated to dance majors.
- Creation of the overview schedule grid for Fabulous Fun Fridays Fall 2025.
- Coordination with the Dance Musician coordinator.
Skill Set Required
- Organization
- Communication
- Knowledge of the dance field
- Sensitivity to undergraduate student needs
- Use of google surveys and google docs
Required Training
- Possible online training for use of google surveys.
- Overview of using Canvas email.
- Use of google docs to create the simple booklet.
Key Deliverables
- Data from Students about the impact of Fabulous Fun Fridays in Spring 2025.
- Suggestions from students for possible future teachers.
- Finalized Grid of Guest Teachers for Fabulous Fun Fridays for Fall 2025.
- Simple booklet for Fall 2025 of Guest Teacher bios, headshots, and the classes they will teach.
- Suggestions for teachers for Spring 2026.