"Upswing" by Amber Heaton: http://www.amberheaton.com/g8biwqalcfjpqcwwy029nmvrwicwxa

 

From Blog Director Jill Randall:

Today's post is an unusual one for Life as a Modern Dancer. I rarely post writing anonymously, but this topic in particular is a hot one within the dance world. I asked three dance department chairs – two current chairs and one retired chair – to candidly share their stories. Together, we wanted to tackle some of the more challenging components of higher ed – budgets, growing and cutting programs, building a professional learning community, and handling conflicts. Knowing that the writing would be posted without their own names and the names of their universities, these three dancers opened up their hearts and offer us a window into the work. Together, we hope to inspire current and future dance department chairs as well as provide valuable insight for dance professors as they build a relationship with their chairs. 

To the three fabulous, anonymous dance chairs here – thank you for sharing your stories and for supporting the field! Thank you for your generosity of spirt. 

Today I share two of the three perspectives. 

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Perspective #1

What are your strengths as chair? What do you bring to the position? 

I was a choreographer, teacher and dancer for 35 years prior to taking a position as Chair of a Dance Department, so when I took the position, my question was — Could I translate my embodied and artistic knowledge of creative making to a leadership practice? 

This desire to link my embodied “making” experiences to leadership has led to my greatest strength, which I believe is…..I like my job! I do not see it as administrative, but rather, as a larger creative practice; I am making things happen through a collaborative process with people. My strengths include all the things nurtured by living an artistic career — tenacity, integrated body/mind, rigor, and agency. I am a strong advocate for dance and the arts. I have garnered many resources for the dance department by being able to collaborate with others and to translate the language of dance in foreign territories. 

What do you enjoy about the position? What brings you satisfaction?  

The pleasure is much the same as what I felt as a choreographer — witnessing the unfolding of something made from the collaboration of a group of people. This used to be making a dance with a group of dancers and designers. Now, it is creating a program, a curriculum, a project, a vision with much larger and more diverse groups of people. The wheel is just bigger. I also appreciate being part of a process that garners the right support and resources to make a project happen, to launch a career, to transform a life. 

What are some of the major lessons you learned that you want to share and pass on to the field? What are some common pitfalls?  

I had to learn how to distance and protect myself, while at the same time allow myself to love, laugh and be vulnerable (in other words remain human). A leadership position is in service of…. so there is a shift in your attention. It is less focused on you and more focused on your role to support. But managing people is, of course, complex. Shared, collectively built organizational systems are critical to developing a culture of trust, equity and transparency. Building these organizational systems, especially collectively, takes time. So in the meantime, leaders can get the brunt of bad behaviors as people juggle to be noticed and get resources. I have a long time practice of Authentic Movement, which helps to ground me. At one point I felt I could not go on because the job was requiring that I wear armor – big, rusted, heavy, protection gear. I could not lead a life in which I could not move, so I was ready to quit. As I was practicing Authentic, the image of chain mail appeared. I could wear this silvery knitted fabric, which protected the arrows from coming in, but allowed movement. This balance of protection and movement is a daily lesson.  

Advice on handling strong personalities within the department….

As a person with aversions to conflict, I have had to learn to become more accepting of conflict as a necessary element to forward movement. I surround myself with numerous mentors from the mental health care profession, peer dance leaders, and friends. The challenge is to find compassion and love for people who are being difficult, while at the same time setting boundaries for behavior. While temper tantrums and devious trickery will distract you, knowing both personal and community core principles provides the strength to stand firm. The willingness to stand alone can also be very difficult, especially when no one else will join you (thus the chain mail). But as with any bully on the playground, setting an example of standing firm helps others to join in…eventually. It takes a village.    

How to encourage a growth mindset with colleagues: 

My choreographic skills were critical in figuring out how to build a collaborative team out of a group of strong individuals. In meetings I rely on my choreographic instincts – Is this the time to shut down an idea, let the chaos unfold, gather toward one point, go on a tangent, change direction, or drop a bombshell? What is the gathering point for a collective way forward? I’ve learned that if you pull out the lens on the camera far enough, you can usually find a place of mutual interest. While two people might disagree when the lens is narrowly focused on aesthetic style or approach to teaching, the broader lens brings perspective. Dancers usually agree on the broader perspective of the importance of dance, so collaboration starts at this point of agreement. From here, conversations are necessary to wrestle with the group’s ability to move beyond binary views that create either/or and embrace a culture of AND.  How do we hold a diversity of opinions AND work together toward a common goal?

Dealing with budgets, positions, growth and decline in programs, etc. with grace.  

Grace. Perspective is critical. Grace.What drives the collective? Projecting forward to the future vision can provide ballast. Budget cuts can seem to prevent that journey, but if you examine carefully – the decisions you make in “editing” might actually lead to a better dance. Grace. Tears as you let go. Lives are affected. The weight is heavy. Grace. Always looking for the essence of the dance. Once you know what is essential you can be strategic about your choices. Grace. Become a tougher negotiator. Our passion to dance sometimes gets in the way. Grace. Humor, boundaries and compassion. Can they all exist together? Grace.   

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Perspective #2

What are your strengths as chair? What do you bring to the position? 

I have a lot of energy, and I am well known and liked on campus and in my dance community. While I do have a strong sense of self, I do not allow my ego to affect hiring choices, and I strive to surround myself with dance educators of the highest caliber. When it comes to curricular and creative artist hiring, I do not need to be the alpha. I hope to place my students in the presence of artists and teachers whose skills and experiences far surpass my own.

What do you enjoy about the position? What brings you satisfaction?

I like being the visionary head of the program, who has the autonomy and authority to execute ideas, initiate programs, and manage faculty and staff. There is a lot of joy in interacting with students on a daily basis. Being considered faculty, rather than administration, makes it possible to still teach and share space and time with the students.

What are some of the major lessons you learned that you want to share and pass on to the field? What are some common pitfalls?

Share your vision, ideas, hopes, plans, everything. Just because an idea seems perfectly natural to you, don’t assume everyone will see it with the same level of clarity. Often, I find that I have to explain things in far greater detail than I think necessary.

Remember the immediacy of the students' experience. They don’t have a 5-10 year master plan. Their goals and desires are much more immediate.

Advice on handling strong personalities within the department….

At times, managing strong personalities is about massaging egos. Pick your battles with these types. Give a little; take a little. Be clear about expectations. Learn to communicate with each member of your faculty and staff in the way that suits HIM/HER best. You’ve got to be a communication chameleon – adapting to the needs of each individual you spend time with.

How to encourage a growth mindset with colleagues:

To be idle in this field is to fall behind. Talk to the students about ideas that excite them. Remind faculty that we are here in service to the kids, and while all ideas are not realistic or even appropriate, we do need to be able to grow, shift, adapt, and embrace the dynamic trends in our field.

Dealing with budgets, positions, growth and decline in programs, etc. with grace.

If serving the students is my main priority, my main joy, and the reason I am here at this school, then these tasks are the requisite maintenance of the program that I must attend to. There are highs (teachable moments, choreographing on students, impromptu hallway mentoring, attending festivals and conferences, hosting amazing guest artists) and lows (those you mention and others), that are unavoidable, but if I remain even keeled, joy filled, patient, and determined, I’m best positioned to do good work.

It’s like having a Porsche. Driving it fast on the open highway is all pleasure, but the car needs to be carefully maintained and taken care of. These tasks are mundane, time consuming, and necessary.

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