BOG approves on-campus dancing

Posted by admin on Nov 24, 2005 in News | 0 comments

Trinity Western University will soon allow social dancing on campus. At their November meeting the Board of Governors agreed to amend the current TWU social dancing policy.

As of January, the Responsibilities of Membership (ROM) will no longer state that “social dancing is not permitted on campus, nor may dances be sponsored by University or student groups.”

In replacement of that clause, there will be a policy that governs on-campus social dancing, said Dr. Ken Kush, Vice President of Student Life. This new policy has been approved by the Board, but “needs to be edited.” The Board will ratify the policy at their February meeting.
These changes are the result of a proposal made by TWUSA President Jamie Woller and Senior Representative Jeremy Vallerand last year.

Woller said that the idea for a proposal came out of an event that TWUSA held last year called “Club Froshmore.” The event mimicked a “club” atmosphere, with music and dancing.

The reactions on campus to such an event were divided, said Woller. “Some said it’s good that we have events where we can express ourselves…Others said, it’s breaking community standards.”

Woller wanted to create “a controlled environment… that we could all enjoy.”

He and Vallerand created a proposal to have swing dancing at the Spring Formal, but it was rejected by Student Life on the grounds of the ROM. Woller and Vallerand agreed to work with Student Life to create a proposal to change the ROM.

The Board first changed the dancing policy in the early ‘90s when the ROM were amended to allow for social dancing off campus.
“Which means you don’t provide a positive alternative,” said Kush. “I supported them [Woller and Vallerand] in the notion of change and provided them with data as to what that change might look like.”

To draft a proposal, they looked at the policies of schools in the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities (CCCU) that allow for dancing.
“The rationale [behind the proposal] was that a lot of other universities were able to find complete enjoyment out of dancing, and it didn’t have to be a strict no-dancing policy,” said Woller.

They worked with Dean of Students, Sheldon Loeppky to develop the proposal and Kush took the proposal to the Board last April, arguing “in support of TWUSA.”

Commenting on the process, Woller said he found the administration “incredibly easy to work with.”

Both Kush and Woller acknowledged that this change will be appreciated by some, but not all.

“There may be elements within our community that will regret this change,” said Kush.

“I’m really reserved,” said freshman Jonathan Kristjansson. “Guidelines [for dancing] would help, but it could lead to a slippery slope.”

Kate Corkum, a sophomore, supports the idea of change. “A lot of students dance,” she said. “If they were able to do it on campus, it would give them more freedom.”

“It’s all part of an evolution,” said Kush. “Things change.”