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 The National Dance Education Organization (NDEO) is an autonomous non-profit organization dedicated to promoting standards of excellence in dance education by providing the dance artist and the dance educator a network of resources and support, a base for advocacy, and access to programs and projects that focus on the importance of dance in the human experience. The goals of NDEO are to: 1) promote dance as an artistic process which broadens and depends human experience; 2) strengthen the national voice in articulating and implementing a vision for dance education; and 3) weave dance into the complete fabric of learning. The NDEO works to advance knowledge in the field of dance education, encourages research and practical application, and promotes quality instruction in dance arts education conducted by qualified teachers of dance. |
Dance found its first home in K-12 and higher education in physical education programs. The first dance major was approved in the Women's Physical Education Department at the University of Wisconsin/Madison in 1926. Until the 1970s, most school and university dance programs continued to be affiliated with girl's and women's physical education. However, as a result of the development of the field, Title IX (1972), and the Equal Educational Opportunity Act (1974), men's and women's physical education merged into coeducational programs that focused on sports. Simultaneously, artists/professionals were encouraged to attend institutions of higher learning and teach in schools. All this resulted in a corresponding realignment of dance into the fine and performing arts. Over time, dance has further defined itself as arts related, while physical education has become more specialized in the areas of athletics and sports science. Throughout this period of transition for dance, from a program in physical education to an independent department in the fine arts, professional preparation and pedagogy in dance changed dramatically. More and more dance educators were now being trained in the creative and artistic processes in dance that involved creating, performing and analyzing dance; techniques founded in problem solving, critical thinking skills, deconstruction and reconstruction, critical analysis, comparative and evaluative analysis, etc., as well as in the cultural, historical, social, and artistic contexts of dance. As institutions of learning grew to recognize the educational and cultural value of dance as an art, departments of fine and performing arts became the appropriate home for dance education:
By the early 1990s, dance achieved a national presence when it joined forces with other arts disciplines (music, theatre, and the visual arts) to support national initiatives in arts education - the Goals 2000: Educate America Act, national standards and assessments in the arts, teacher guidelines for certification/licensure, national Task Force Committees in arts education, and national surveys in arts education. The National Dance Education Organization was established in December 1997 due to the need to address the teaching of dance as an art form in K-12 schools, institutions of higher education, and independent schools of dance.   The National Dance Education Organization (NDEO) sprang into existence full grown with support from major leadership in dance education to create an independent and autonomous organization that would fulfill the needs of the field and address dance as an art in education and private schools of dance. In April 1998, we established a national office near Washington, DC to be in close proximity to other national arts and education associations, federal agencies, and offices whose work impacts the arts education agenda in America. NDEO initiated an important, on-going process of dialogue with other professional organizations and legislative bodies to address the issues and policy decisions that impact quality dance education in America's schools, studios and universities. Within its first year, NDEO established itself as the voice for the leadership of Dance Education in over 150 organizations and agencies. We immediately gained recognition in the form of grants, liaisons, national projects, and national involvement. In this, our third year, we have met requests to establish State Affiliates in Missouri and Utah, with 5 other states in process. We are also helping states develop teacher certification in Maine, New Hampshire, Colorado, and Missouri, while several other states wait in line. NDEO is not rooted in the past, but was formed with its eye on the future of Dance Education. Invest in your future. Support dance education centered in the arts! Almost all of NDEO's funds are put back into the field to support conferences, programs, projects, grants, resources, and technical assistance. This commitment has launched systemic change and growth in the discipline.
Much work has been accomplished, but much more needs to be done. The agenda is ambitious but exciting. We welcome your partnership in this dance education initiative! NDEO is a membership driven organization. Its members had a strong voice in the formation of its structure. They vote for its Board of Directors, write for its publications and contribute published resources. They participate on national task forces and organizational teams, and they determine the direction and thrust of initiatives through active communication with the NDEO office or Board. The Board of Directors is responsible to the membership. Below is a list of NDEO's current Board of Directors. |
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Pamela Paulson, Ph.D. Elsa Posey, R.D.E. Mary Lynn Smith Sara Lee Gibb Karen Bradley, C.M.A., M.A. Maxine DeBruyn, M.S. Loren Bucek, M.A. Patricia Cohen, M.A. Timothy Wilson, Ed.D. |
Jane Bonbright, Ed.D. Susan McGreevy-Nichols, M.S. Terri Filips Joanna Friesen, Ph.D. Jaye Knutson, C.M.A., M.A. Diane McGhee, M.S. Darwin Prioleau Byron Richard, M.A. Dale Schmid, M.Ed. |
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NDEO works with approximately 150 federal and state agencies, arts and education associations, and businesses and corporations to support the teaching of dance as an art form in education in the environments of PreKindergarten - 12, colleges and universities, private studios and schools of dance, professional preparation institutions, and outreach centers that work at local, state, and/or national levels. Financial Support and Grants Received From National
Endowment for the Arts National Partnerships International
Association of Dance, Medicine and Science Federal Education Agencies - supports the work of states in standards, curriculum, assessments, surveys and data collection; systemic reform; and partnerships at national, state and local levels. ArtsEdge State Agencies - facilitates NDEO's work with states and grants. State
Departments of Education Arts Education Partnership - membership of 150 federal/state agencies, arts/education organizations, businesses and corporations, and philanthropic foundations working to support delivery of quality arts education in schools, colleges, and universities. Consortium of National Arts Education Associations - systemic change in arts education, American
Alliance for Theatre Education Alliance for Curriculum Reform - develops joint resources in curriculum, assessments, guidelines supporting stemic change in education K-16. American
Association for the Advancement of Science The Dance Consortium - a coalition of 20 national dance organizations, currently exploring ways to join forces and share resources in dance. American
College Dance Festival Association UNITY - a consortium of private sector dance associations with membership from regional chapters of Dance Masters of America and national dance organizations. American
Academy of Ballet NDEO State and National Institutional Memberships/Affiliate Memberships African
American Dance Ensemble, NC |