Hillsdale College’s theater and speech department officially added a new dance minor Feb. 2. The minorrequires 22 credit hours of both academic and physical courses.
“I just got sent the requirements today,” junior Dan Thelen said. “I’ll be really close to getting it. It will be a tight squeeze, but I’m going to give it my best effort.”
Thelen has been dancing with the Tower Dancers since his freshman year at Hillsdale and teaches dance in the community. He is pleased for the the opportunity to put his passion on his resume.
“I think it’s about time,” Thelen said. “It might open doors for new classes in the future. It will probably get the interest of students who have put dance on the back burner.”
Sophomore Katherine Holt has been dancing for 15 years and is also involved with the Tower Dancers.
“I’m really happy about it,” she said. “I’m a little concerned they decided to do this after it’s too late to add classes, but at least they did it.”
Holt said she would have to catch up with a lot of the credits to graduate with a dance minor but is seriously considering pursuing it.
“Most girls are like me and just audit or show up for [dance] classes,” Holt said. “I think the minor will get the numbers up for dancers who want to enroll in the classes.”
Visiting Assistant Professor of Dance Corinne Imberski, along with other Hillsdale staff members, needed to fulfill requirements before the faculty voted on whether or not the minor would be created. The vote took place last week and it was in the dance program’s favor.
“Everybody seems really excited about it,” Imberski said. “I think it’s going to be a pretty popular minor for a variety of our students, not just dance and theater students.”
Imberski said that dance has a rich history that students should explore. The study of dance is both physical and mental, making it a balanced field.
“I think it is of the utmost importance,” Imberski said. “Music and theater have always been an academic pursuit. Dance has not had the same visibility and prestige. It’s a performance art that has been around just as long.”