Say hello to the revamped Dance Club at The College of Idaho.
The club was originally founded in 2008 before going dormant. Current senior Julia Phelps re-established the club in 2017 and the group has been active on campus since.
Mungo Ligoya, a Malawian sophomore at the College, is the club’s president. Maintaining interest from a diverse group of students is a key component of the Dance Club.
“The diversity lends itself to bettering the club because just by having different people with different ideas of dance is a good enough start,” Ligoya said. “We also integrated Afro Dance Club and just Dance Club so that we do not have a divide in the world of C of I dancers. That also helps with bringing more diversity to the club.”
The diversity within the group brings different dance styles, techniques, and personalities to the dance floor that help to create an inclusive and positive environment. One of the goals for the club was to reach out to students and convince them to give Dance Club a try.
“Dance is a de-stressor for me, so I want to share that with people,” Ligoya said. “When homework gets too much, come dance with us.”
Last year, Dance Club led a canned food drive in which students could pay for dance lessons via cans of food or donations as it combined philanthropic work with a love for dance.
Dance Club meets at 8:30 on Tuesday nights in the J.A. Albertson Activities Center and is open to all students regardless of previous dance experience.
The College of Idaho has a 128-year-old legacy of excellence. The College is known for its outstanding academic programs, winning athletics tradition and history of producing successful graduates, including seven Rhodes Scholars, three governors, and countless business leaders and innovators. Its distinctive PEAK Curriculum challenges students to attain competency in the four knowledge peaks of humanities, natural sciences, social sciences and a professional field—empowering them to earn a major and three minors in four years. The College’s close-knit, residential campus is located in Caldwell, where its proximity both to Boise and to the world-class outdoor activities of southwest Idaho’s mountains and rivers offers unique opportunities for learning beyond the classroom. For more information, visit www.collegeofidaho.edu.
Story written by Riley Nielsen, Marketing & Communications student intern