A Collegiate Affair
August 30, 2013

Taking students to a college dance fair can help them make connections and decide where to apply.

Colorado Dance Expo participants sample a Colorado Mesa University jazz class.

The questions seem endless for dancers applying to college. On top of worries like class size, location and tuition, they must consider ideas an English major doesn’t have to. Should they choose a liberal arts or conservatory program? Can they continue to take pointe in a modern dance department? And is double-majoring allowed?

College dance fairs offer a one-stop shopping experience for high-schoolers, bringing together some of the country’s top dance departments, so students can talk to faculty members, take classes and sometimes even audition for admission or scholarships. Organizing a trip can be a great way to educate your students and help them make connections, while updating your own knowledge of dance in college.

For Adge Marziano of Crested Butte School of Dance, the Colorado Dance Expo was a chance to give her small-town students exposure to many programs at once and gain insight about their differences. She says it made the idea of applying to college less intimidating. “It showed students that you have so many options: You can do a two-year program or minor in dance,” she says. “I felt so good about taking them there.”

Planning a Trip

Victoria Fink, a teacher at the Henrico County Center for the Arts in Virginia, has been taking students to the Regional or National High School Dance Festival for five years. The conference for high schools includes a college fair and master classes with participating dance department faculty, giving students a chance to see what style of dance each school teaches. Fink will help students decide which to take depending on their expressed interests. She brings 16 to 20 juniors and seniors, based on talent and academic performance and their interest in pursuing dance in college.

The festival may be in Norfolk, VA, about a two-hour drive from Henrico, or Miami or Philadelphia, which require airfare and a hotel. Parents don’t usually attend Fink’s trip, but the director and an additional teacher from Center for the Arts help chaperone. She sends several letters home to parents over the course of the year, detailing logistics and expectations of the trip. Festival costs, lodging, transportation and breakfast are added together into one fee that parents can pay in one or two installments.

Ask the Right Questions

It’s important to encourage students to look into participating college programs before the trip, so that they will be informed enough to ask detailed questions about each school. (Dance Magazine’s yearly College Guide and DanceU101.com are great resources.) “Students should be curious and not afraid to ask any question they want,” says University of North Carolina School of the Arts’ dance chair Brenda Daniels, who represents the program at the College Dance Fair in Boca Raton, Florida. “College is such a big investment, so it is very important to find the right fit.” It is also a good time for teachers to get an update on what’s happening in college dance and bring home any pamphlets or information for students, parents and teachers who weren’t able to attend themselves.

On site, Fink divides students so some dance while the others travel around the tables. This way, she has the time to guide them during their one-on-one Q&A. Walking up to representatives can be nerve-racking, so Fink may jumpstart conversations by asking a few questions before letting the student lead.

Taking dancers to a fair doesn’t just help provide them with the information they need to apply. It’s a chance for students to make a lasting impression on the programs’ faculty members. Recruiters often make admissions recommendations to their departments about students they meet. “I do track promising students if I see them in a dance class at the fair,” says Daniels. “And I will follow up with them by e-mail to see if they are planning on applying.” DT

2013–14 College Fairs

There are many fairs around the country for students interested in visual and performance arts, but the following specialize in dance.

College Dance Fair

collegedancefair.com

August 30–September 1, 2013

Boca Ballet Theatre

Boca Raton, FL

Colorado Dance Expo

coloradodanceexpo.com

October 5, 2013

Denver School of the Arts

Denver, CO

Greater Cincinnati Dance Alliance Dance College Fair

greatercincinnatidancealliance.org

October 6, 2013

The School for Creative & Performing Arts, Erich Kunzel Center for Arts and Education

Cincinnati, OH

Dancewave’s Dancing Through College and Beyond

dancewave.org/kidscafe-college-and-beyond.php

October 20, 2013

Marymount Manhattan College

New York, NY

National High School Dance Festival

nhsdf.org

April 3–6, 2014

New World School of the Arts

Miami, FL

Lea Marshall is interim chair of the Department of Dance and Choreography at Virginia Commonwealth University, and co-founder of Ground Zero Dance.

Photo by Nathan Rigaud, courtesy of Colorado Dance Expo

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