St. Edward’s University now offers Houston ballet dancers the opportunity to broaden their education.

After introducing the degree plan to the local Austin Ballet in January 2008, St. Edward’s is providing the Houston Ballet with a similar program.

“The world of dance is changing,” said associate professor Ramsey Fowler, coordinator of the B.A. in Dance and Humanities. “Ballet Austin and the Houston Ballet are on the edge of that world. Providing these dancers with an education is essential.”

The nature of a dance is short-lived; therefore, all dancers must experience a career change very early in their adult lives. Cookie Gregory Ruiz, executive director of Ballet Austin, and George E. Martin, St. Edward’s president and member of the board of Ballet Austin, said that they were concerned for the future of these dancers. Thus began the development of the program.

“I think with a greater sense of the world and a greater sense of self, one can discover a new level of artistry in their dancing,” Austin Ballet dancer Michelle Ulerich said. “These programs are making it possible and acceptable for dancers to learn outside of their studio life. I think it is exciting.”

The program is modeled after the university’s New College Program, which provides adults with more flexible ways to obtain a degree. The model grants the ballet students the chance to manage their own time by balancing dance and studies.

New College offers seven-week courses, during which, for financial aid purposes, the dancers will be taking a minimum of two courses.

“I love the New College program because it really caters to adults who are working, have families and have had other careers,” Ulerich said. “St. Edward’s has offered Ballet Austin a huge gift and I tell people about that gift all the time.”

If the Houston Ballet’s dancers are still in need of general course credits, St. Edward’s has partnered with Houston Community College to make obtaining a degree possible.

Currently, there are 15 Ballet Austin students and 13 Houston Ballet dancers enrolled in the program. The dancers are all striving for a bachelor’s degree in Dance and Humanities.

The program offers students 27 hours of courses in Humanities along with as many electives as they can fit into their schedule.

Dancers in the main company receive 36 credit hours in dance, and the dancers in the second dance company will receive 24 credit hours.

Through the use of technology, such as Blackboard and Skype, St. Edward’s is providing the dancers with higher-level education. The university has made it clear that professors will be making occasional trips to Houston in order to establish a relationship with their students.

Now ballet dancers and their families do not have to choose between a promising education and their life’s passion, but work very closely with both options.

This fall marks the first semester of the program being implemented with the Houston Ballet, and is the last set of courses in the initial sequence for Ballet Austin.

In the near future, Houston Ballet will continue with the program, and Ballet Austin will introduce the program to a new group of dancers in the company.

Through the use of technology, St. Edward’s hopes to someday expand the program and offer it to a large variety of dance companies in several locations.

“Our goal in the long run is to distribute this program everywhere,” Fowler said.