Spring Break
Dance department struggles with budget
Emily Sears, Contributing Writer, esears@smu.edu
Issue date: 5/1/07 Section: News
When the red pimple on SMU dance major Megan Crichton's forehead continued to grow, she got the feeling it was more serious than acne.
"It started getting really big and pussy, so I went to the doctor and he said I had staph," said Crichton.
One of three dance students in two months to get the infection last year, Crichton suspects dancing and sweating on unclean studio floors were to blame.
"I think we (SMU Division of Dance) definitely have a budget problem," she said.
Crichton is not alone.
Many SMU students and some faculty and administrators say the SMU Division of Dance is under funded, particularly regarding facilities' and production costs.
"The production budgets we have here are lower than those at the competition, and that's not right," Dr. Jose Bowen, dean at the Meadows School of the Arts, said.
The SMU dance division is one of the founding members of the accrediting body, the National Association of Schools of Dance, according to dance chair Myra Woodruff.
Two primary budgets keep the division going: operations and production. Operations covers costs of guest artists, adjunct salaries and basic expenses for keeping the division running. Production costs are those used to pay for performances, such as costuming, scenery and the rights to perform master works. An office that oversees all facilities in the Owen Fine Arts Center pays for the cleaning and upkeep of dance studios. In addition, Myra Woodruff determines the use of an unrestricted account, which usually goes toward productions and summer study.
Carleen Naugle, Meadows director of business and finance, acknowledges hearing questions from dance faculty about budget problems. But she doesn't see a problem with the division's budget.
"We have better (funding) than most, but of course it's not good enough," Naugle said.
What do most have? Travis Waldschmidt, a senior dance major, transferred to SMU after a year in the Purchase College Conservatory of Dance at the State University of New York.
"It started getting really big and pussy, so I went to the doctor and he said I had staph," said Crichton.
One of three dance students in two months to get the infection last year, Crichton suspects dancing and sweating on unclean studio floors were to blame.
"I think we (SMU Division of Dance) definitely have a budget problem," she said.
Crichton is not alone.
Many SMU students and some faculty and administrators say the SMU Division of Dance is under funded, particularly regarding facilities' and production costs.
"The production budgets we have here are lower than those at the competition, and that's not right," Dr. Jose Bowen, dean at the Meadows School of the Arts, said.
The SMU dance division is one of the founding members of the accrediting body, the National Association of Schools of Dance, according to dance chair Myra Woodruff.
Two primary budgets keep the division going: operations and production. Operations covers costs of guest artists, adjunct salaries and basic expenses for keeping the division running. Production costs are those used to pay for performances, such as costuming, scenery and the rights to perform master works. An office that oversees all facilities in the Owen Fine Arts Center pays for the cleaning and upkeep of dance studios. In addition, Myra Woodruff determines the use of an unrestricted account, which usually goes toward productions and summer study.
Carleen Naugle, Meadows director of business and finance, acknowledges hearing questions from dance faculty about budget problems. But she doesn't see a problem with the division's budget.
"We have better (funding) than most, but of course it's not good enough," Naugle said.
What do most have? Travis Waldschmidt, a senior dance major, transferred to SMU after a year in the Purchase College Conservatory of Dance at the State University of New York.
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