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NEWSLETTER:
September 14, 2007

******* News ********

Yesterday I sat in on a planning meeting for arts related field trips in the Baton Rouge area. This meeting was of teachers/parents/arts teachers and administrators. The idea was to plan arts related field trips for grades K-5. Each of the arts related activities selected was a visual arts/science activity either at LASM or the Shaw center. I spoke up that the performing arts were left out. It is Arts not art.

The response was "What offerings are available?" As a dance educator I was looking for dance offerings- and I do not know of any. This led me to ask "Are school children getting exposure to quality dance performance?" and "Are school children getting exposure to great works of Dance?" and also, "Are these great works of dance limited in style and genre?"

What teachers and administrators say they need:

  1. We need hands on activities and activities that meet our GLE's (Grade Level Expectations).

  2. We do not want children sitting still during a performance. We want
    them involved in the process.

  3. If there were these kinds of Dance opportunities we would go.

How we as the dance community can easily solve this problem:

  1. If you are a dance presenter in any way please realize that most companies have a public school outreach show that they will perform for a lower fee than a regular show (usually). School districts will pay for these tickets! They are actively looking for these type shows. A lot of dance companies even give a teachers guide out to the schools with pre and post dance activities. Many companies have a grant obligation to do outreach.

  2. Bring companies in and work with the venue to allow school children to also take advantage. The Shaw center understands these needs and GLE's (for visual arts). Dance connects to these standards just as easily.

Consider creating an outreach program for your own company that does the following:

  1. Has a lecture demonstration type feel- it is a learning show not just a physical show.

  2. Involves the audience member (they dance in the seat - Ririe Woodberry does a great job of this in their school show!)

  3. Create a show that demonstrates body, space, time, and energy in a way that kids can relate to and even do. The elements will always connect with the National Dance Standards and Louisiana Dance Standards.

  4. Consider creating an educational teachers guide to go along with your performance. It should help teachers make connections with other subjects or connect with the National Dance Standards.

Thank you for supporting dance. Remember the children are the dance audience of the future!

Laura Peterson

NEWSLETTER:
March 2, 2007

******* News ********

LAD will be using this year as a planning year. Please make sure that you and your organization are part of the plan. Many exciting things are afoot for LAD in the coming year! LAD will host another festival in 2008. The 2008 festival will be larger in scope- you will love it!

This summer we are planning a one-day retreat and revive spa of creativity for dancers, choreographers, and teachers of dance. Be ready to learn from your peers and special guests and get inspired for another year of dance. More news about this professional development workshop very soon.

LAD will be participating in a survey from the Arts Council. The survey will deal with Louisiana and Arts in Education (AIE). LAD will be involved in the dance section. The survey will arrive to LAD members via e-mail. If you teach in the public schools or do dance residencies in the public schools be sure to contribute. We want dance to have a voice in this survey!

Reminder: The new guidelines for grant writing are now available from the National Endowment for the Arts.

The National Dance Education Organization will host their annual conference for dance educators this year in Mobile, Alabama June 20-24. This is a huge national conference with offerings for dance in many areas. This is the firs time this conference has been held in this region of the country. The conference is titled: Focus on Dance Education: Community Building. You can see a detailed list of presentations on their web site at ndeo.org

***** Call for News ********

Please send newsworthy announcements to Laura Peterson at petedelt@cox.net. Newsworthy announcements could be: job openings for dancers, dance teachers, choreographers, and other dance-related or arts-related openings, auditions, studios for sale, conferences or workshops dealing with dance, graduate courses being offered in dance, "Needs and Haves" (i.e. props, backdrops, music, costumes, etc...). Please limit these to Louisiana and surrounding areas. Please send contact information with your news (name and phone number, or e-mail).

**** Call for nominations for
LAD Regional Coordinators ***

In order to better serve the dance community of the entire State of Louisiana, we are asking for the nominations of regional coordinators.

We encourage you to nominate yourself. We must nominate from our member base, however a qualified candidate could complete membership to be included. We need 8, and they serve a 3-year appointment. Regions will be the same as used for Decentralized Arts Funding:

Region 1- New Orleans including Orleans, St.Tammany , St. John the Baptist, St. Bernard, Plaquemines, and Jefferson parishes

Region 2- Baton Rouge including East Baton Rouge, West Baton Rouge, Livingston, Ascension, Iberville, Pointe Coupee, West Feliciana, East Feliciana, St. Helena,Washington, and Tangipahoa parishes

Region 3 - Houma including St. James, St. Charles, Lafourche, Assumption, and Terrebonne parishes

Region 4- Lafayette including Lafayette, Vermilion, Iberia, St. Mary, St. Martin, Acadia, Evangeline and St. Landry parishes

Region 5- Lake Charles including Cameron, Calcasieu, Jefferson Davis, Allen, and Beauregard parishes

Region 6- Alexandria including Grant, Rapides, LaSalle, Catahoula, Concordia, Avoyelles, Vernon, and Winn parishes

Region 7- Shreveport including Bossier, Caddo, DeSoto, Sabine, Red River, Natchitoches, Bienville, Lincoln, Claiborne, and
Webster parishes

Region 8- Monroe including Union, Morehouse, West Carroll, East Carroll, Righland, Madison, Tensas, Franklin, Caldwell, Jackson, and Ouchita parishes

Duties of the regional coordinators:

  • Serve as voting members on the LAD Board of Directors.
  • Submit a report to the Board of Directors at all meetings.
  • Serve as a liaison for all members of the dance community in respective regions.
  • Facilitate private and commercial dance collaboration activities.
  • Develop performance opportunities to nurture and promote dancers.
  • Act as a host site for LAD festivals to encourage statewide participation in festivals.
  • Maintain a list of members and dance supporters in respective regions.
  • Encourage sponsorship within the region.
  • Encourage networking through conferences or workshops.
  • Maintain a notebook or file to be passed on to the next regional coordinator.
  • Assist with fundraising and membership drive.

Please reply to this e-mail with names of nominations for regions. Please submit nominees by April 30.