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Disappointment as Otago Uni cuts dance degree

Author
Newstalk ZB Staff,
Publish Date
Sat, 15 Jul 2017, 7:37AM
Photo / Getty
Photo / Getty

Disappointment as Otago Uni cuts dance degree

Author
Newstalk ZB Staff,
Publish Date
Sat, 15 Jul 2017, 7:37AM

A former dance student at Otago University says future students will miss out on opportunities now that the dance degree's been axed.

Dance will no longer come under the School of Physical Education, Sport and Exercise and will instead be offered under the Music, Theatre and Performing Arts Department.

Former student Georgia Davenport, who now works at Craighead Diocesan School in Timaru, says it's a shame the full programme's been cut.

She says there's always been a strong focus on how dance affects the community and future students will miss out.

"How us as human beings we evolved dance in order to help us better understand ourselves and our relationships to one another - I just hope that community aspect will be retained but I don't feel that it will be."

Ms Davenport said the programme has had a strong focus on how dance is relevant to a diverse range of fields.

"Another friend was doing dance and ecology and how we can teach people about the planet using dance, and it really gave us wonderful, wonderful opportunities and it's such a shame that other students aren't going to get the opportunities we did."

Ms Davenport said lecturers and other former students are all upset at the news.

Otago University has said interest in many of the current dance papers was low.

 

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