Panelists:

“The wellbeing of young people–the wellbeing of humans, is about us getting reconnected to our full integrated selves, which is body and mind. Knowing that these bodies carry such rich information and knowledge that connects us with our ancestors, that helps us make meaning of what’s happening right now--that positions us to move forward.”  

– Aysha Upchurch

“The arts have always been at the forefront of questioning, pushing, dealing with pain and hurt and challenge. Stepping in at a critical moment of societal reckoning, how can I, as the person who’s been handed this [leadership] opportunity, really talk about inclusivity and diversity? Who are the practitioners of all these different genres of dance –  house dance, hiphop, vernaculars that are from all over the world – who may not have been given a platform before?”

– Alison Manning
 
“One thing we all spoke about was having mentors in our lives when we were younger who told us that we mattered. I think that’s foundational. It’s so easy for our young people not to feel like they matter, like their place in this world matters. And that they can take a stance and move, and that people care about their development, not just as dancers, as artists, but as human beings.”

– Jamal Joseph
 
“We’ve talked about how movement strengthens the identity, the sense of self, the confidence of each individual child. We’ve talked about how it strengthens relationships of kids with each other – how it builds community, how it strengthens the social fabric. I like to say that a piece of choreography is a rehearsal for society because in moving together, we are negotiating our different points of view, expressed physically. And as we move together, we strengthen our bonds. We learn to get along.”

– Sabrina Peck