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Lóri Fejes (he/him) is a student and scholar of dance and performance. He grew up with folk dance in his native Hungary but found a calling for dance only in college in the United States. His research investigates dance’s relation with place and community, across paper, choreography, and in the classroom. His work has been presented across the US through the Mid-America Theatre Conference, Cultural Studies Association, Costume Society of America, the Dance Studies Association, the Laban/Bartenieff Institute for Movement Studies, and NDEO. He holds degrees in dance from Hamilton College and SUNY Brockport, and is pursuing a PhD in the Department of Theatre & Dance at the University at Buffalo. Lóri served as NDEO's Graduate Student Representative in 2025.
For 2025, the NDEO membership entrusted me to serve as the Graduate Student Representative. I had been honored to carry out this work, and following a hiatus from the role, ask that you trust in my service for another term. In my renewed candidacy, I echo my previous platforms, which highlight NDEO as an unparalleled resource for all dance graduate students, especially complementing graduate programs that may not emphasize preparation in pedagogy.
When I served in this role and on the Student Initiatives Committee, I worked to emphasize to the Advisory Council the importance of affordable conference experiences, furthering conversations on identifying funding both within and outside NDEO, to support students. At the Detroit Conference, the committee offered a great selection of panels and sessions, whose preparation and facilitation I assisted, and my experience as a graduate student informed our higher education career panel directly.
I come to NDEO with a distinct organizational background in dance. As an undergraduate student at Hamilton College, I served on the Student Dance Association’s board, assisting in their annual student work showcase, and helped reestablish a student club dedicated to accessible ballet. In my graduate studies, I went on to serve as Guest Artist Coordinator for SUNY Brockport’s Student Dance Organization. In that role I worked to expand Brockport’s decades-old Dance Awareness Days tradition, re-igniting a storied connection with the Limón Company and curating classes by local practitioners of musical theatre, European and West African dance forms, and voguing.
My advocacy within NDEO continues, even during my time away from the Advisory Council. In 2025, I drafted a comprehensive, multi-year agenda for the Student Initiatives Committee, which includes the creation of a regular student newsletter, streamlined access to student resources on the NDEO website, and increasing conference affordability, all to maximize the number of students NDEO can engage and serve. I still work to fine-tune these proposals, often seeking conversations with members of the Advisory Council and staff. Returning to the graduate student representative role for a two-year term will provide the continuity necessary to create lasting impact for the student population I hope to serve again.
Having been an NDEO member for multiple years, participating in the PK-12 Mentorship Program, presenting, facilitating, and volunteering at conferences, I am a candidate with previous experience in this exact role. I humbly request your support in my candidacy for the role of Graduate Student Representative for the next two years. I look forward to continuing the important work of the Student Initiatives Committee and cannot wait to serve the NDEO membership in this role once again.