Here is a typical recent Monday from my life at North Carolina School of the Arts:

 

I wake at 6 a.m. and spend an hour working on projects for the American Dance Festival/Hollins University master’s degree program I am currently enrolled in. One project is a research paper for my History, Theory, and Criticism class. My topic is dancers who have had children and careers at the New York City Ballet, American Ballet Theatre, and Alvin Ailey American Dance Company. I read books and articles, take notes, and prepare interview questions; I write, edit and footnote the manuscript. Some days I work on my digital portfolio, which should detail every aspect of my career so far. I write the narrative, scan materials for a slide show, and capture video clips in iMovie. I then prepare myself and my 5-year-old daughter for our respective school days.

 

After dropping my daughter off at her school, I continue on to NCSA. I usually arrive in my office at 9 a.m. and for the next hour, I put on my Assistant Dean hat. I deal with day-to-day scheduling issues, posting notices, meeting with students, answering emails from parents and prospective students, setting the agenda for faculty meetings, writing letters of recommendation, arranging audition tours, doing assorted committee work (this year that included the SACS Quality Enhancement Plan, Alcohol Policies Task Force, Educational Policies Committee, and the High School Improvement Team), and contacting future guest artists. At 10 a.m., I begin to plan my technique and composition classes. I teach technique every day from 10:20 a.m. to 11:50 a.m., and composition every day from 11:50 a.m. to 12:50 p.m. Teaching is the heart and soul of my work at NCSA and requires every ounce of my energy and passion.

 

After classes, the contemporary faculty meets from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. to discuss all manner of departmental business. After the meeting, I listen to Mozart’s Serenade in B Flat – the music I am using for a new major half-hour piece I am choreographing for the Winter Dance concert. I pick up my daughter at 4 p.m., shop, and make dinner. At 7 p.m., I head back to school to rehearse my piece with the 30 dancers involved. Rehearsal lasts until 10 p.m. I then will see some student creative work and leave the building at 10:30 p.m. I go home and make a rehearsal plan for the next day, and finally go to bed around 11 p.m.

 

Every day is very similar to this day. When I am choreographing pieces, Saturdays are spent at NCSA as well. The time commitment of the job is enormous, but so are the rewards. It is at North Carolina School of the Arts that my creative, pedagogical, and administrative talents can all be used to their maximum.