Atlanta Ballet’s Centre for Dance Education has launched a pilot afterschool program at Briar Hills Elementary in East Point. The dance centre wants to become part of the school’s curriculum in the next academic year.
Through ballet and modern dance, students are taught discipline, listening skills, intentionality, teamwork and structure, said Diane Caroll, the Centre for Dance Education’s community partnerships director.
“When new students start to learn the structure of class and what it entails, you do see a change; they are more aware of how they are moving and their peers are moving,” Caroll said. “It’s not just about jumping around and dancing, it’s actually about learning a disciplined art. You can take all of those tools with you as a student … and it can really be life-changing for some of them.”
The afterschool dance program began Jan. 15 and includes two-hour sessions once per week in the school gym.
The program was previously held at Parklane Elementary, which closed last spring following redistricting by Fulton County Schools. Atlanta Ballet’s Centre for Dance Education has partnered with the school system for 30 years, Caroll said.
The objective is for the school system to allow the Centre for Dance Education to become part of the curriculum at Briar Hills Elementary beginning in the fall, she added. An afterschool program would continue to be offered for students with a deeper interest in dance instruction.
Fulton County Schools did not provide comment when SaportaReport inquired.
In addition to Briar Hills, Atlanta Ballet’s Centre for Dance Education also partners with Utopia for the Arts in Clayton County and Hollis Innovation Academy, which is part of Atlanta Public Schools, Caroll said.
The Centre for Dance Education was founded in 1996 by former Atlanta Ballet Artistic Director John McFall with the mission of providing every community the opportunity to enjoy dance.
