Access and Innovation: A Degree Program for Professional Dancers in Transition

By understanding a dancer's approach to learning, the education is extremely effective. LEAP teaches dancers how to think critically towards life, which greatly prepares a mind that has been overly focused on thinking critically towards only dance, [to] adjust to the worm outside (LEAP graduate). The Liberal Education for Arts Professionals (LEAP) program, now entering its tenth year, has achieved success by providing access to a particular group of underserved adult learners and by tailoring a bachelor's degree program to their unique needs. This article describes professional dancers' needs as they transition to a post-performing career and how the LEAP program addresses barriers to access and provides an innovative program to meet their needs. The article concludes with a description of program outcomes. Performers in Transition "I've known plenty of dancers who performed at the world's greatest theaters, having roses thrown at their feet, and then [when they could no longer dance] worked at a 7-Eleven" (Monaghan, 2002). With few exceptions, the professional life of a dancer is limited to their mid-to-late thirties, and many dancers succumb to injuries much earlier (National Endowment, 2008). This fact was the primary motivation for the creation of a bachelor's degree program designed to facilitate the transition of dancers into a post-performing career. Most professional dancers begin training at an early age with a dedication and focus that leaves little time to pursue other interests or education. As a result, the proportion of dancers with bachelor's degrees (one in eight) is just half that of the total US work force (one in four) - in fact they are the only occupation in the arts with an educational attainment below the national average (National Endowment, 2008). Traditionally, many retired performers become dance teachers, but that career--and the pay scale--are increasingly dependent on a bachelor's degree (Baumol, Jeffri, & Throsby, 2004). Although some retired dancers enter college when their performing careers are over, they face the challenge of financing a long, part-time journey to a degree while working at a low-paying job. Others try to attend while still performing, but face both financial and scheduling difficulties. Dancers are the lowest paid of all professionals in the arts, with a median income in 2005 of $20,000 (National Endowment, 2008). In addition, the demands of rehearsal, performing, and touring make it very difficult to attend regularly scheduled college classes. Although many dancers are aware that they will eventually face a transition to another career, when the occasion arises, they discover that they are ill-prepared (Baumol et al., 2004). They are "lost souls" (Levine, 2003): disoriented, bewildered, experiencing a loss of identity (Greben, 2002), a sense of emptiness (Staplin, 2007), and feeling like they have "walked off a cliff into oblivion" (Hamilton, 2000, p. 106). A national study of issues related to dance training found that "the challenges of career transition are best addressed through approaches that empower the dancer and begin long before a dancer ceases performing" (Levine, 2003, p. 5, italics added). Exploring other interests while earning a bachelor's degree can, therefore, provide dancers with an opportunity to consider a variety of options for their future, broaden their skills and knowledge, and help them grow personally. Whether they decide on a second career in or outside the world of dance, they will have more choices. The LEAP Program Saint Mary's College of California has a long tradition--dating from the creation of the teaching order of the Christian Brothers in the 17th century--of making education accessible to the underserved. The LEAP program grew out of this commitment when the director of the College's dance program, herself a retired dancer who had earned a degree after retirement, brought this idea for a new program to the attention of the adult-serving arm of the college. …