A cohort of LMU Dance students and faculty traveled to Panama this February to host a variety of dance workshops for underserved local children while also engaging in educational workshops hosted by local education-based practitioners. The trip was not only an opportunity for service and outreach but also allowed dance students to develop themselves as changemakers through dance and dance education in addition to developing an international and multicultural perspective by working with students from different backgrounds, languages, and walks of life.
For nearly ten years, the Movement Exchange Program at LMU has provided an opportunity for LMU Dance students to travel to Panama and host educational dance workshops for young children who lack access to arts and dance education within their local communities. Following previous COVID-19 disruptions and issues relating to lack of funding, the Movement Exchange annual Panama trip was finally able to return to LMU this year.
Junior dance major Jessie Hernandez, the student president of the LMU Movement Exchange chapter, and assistant professor of dance, Bernard Brown, the faculty advisor for the program, were among the group, which also included dance majors Aviana Goodman-Fish, Kaylin Moore, Asha Mathena, and Devyn Marshall. Hernandez has always had a strong interest and background in dance service and is currently pursuing a teaching credential for dance in secondary high school education in addition to her BA in dance. As an aspiring educator who plans on working in public schools after graduating from LMU, she was particularly impacted by the experience.
“Movement exchange does such a great job bringing in teachers who foster a sense of safety in their dance spaces,” said Hernandez. “Even if the students have a new teacher that they’ve never met before, that maybe doesn’t even speak the same language as them, they’re able to advocate for themselves, and they’re able to still have fun in those circumstances because dance connects people despite these types of barriers. It’s so beautiful to see an organization that’s really committed to giving kids those spaces where they can really learn – not just dance but life skills, communication, and community-building.”
Brown, a veteran dance practitioner who has been teaching at LMU since the fall of 2021, joined the students on the Panama trip this year to provide a source of support, especially given that some of the students had little to no experience traveling internationally prior to the trip. Brown also used the experience as a research opportunity to learn more about the program in a hands-on and proactive manner, participating in workshops alongside his students, so he could fully experience the impact of service through the lens of dance.
“The experience of teaching in Panama leads us to consider cultural humility and empathy,” said Brown. “Dance is so beautiful in that way. In this type of program, we have to release ego and be present and be with each other and learn and live and make mistakes. Failure can be a part of the process but is not something that we necessarily prize in the university setting or in American society generally. We’re product oriented, process oriented, perfection oriented. And freedom from that really allowed us to be wholly human. And it’s our humanity that we want to celebrate.”
A large component of the exchange program emphasizes the way in which physical exchange occurs through service, both by giving and receiving. This also further supports the significance of unique programs like Movement Exchange at LMU, which has several university chapters located at various college campuses nationwide.
For Hernandez, the connections made through dance and its inherent unique opportunities are what make these types of experiences so special to her. “Dance is different from all other studies because it’s physical, it manifests in your body and can have so many positive physical and mental impacts. Having organizations like Movement Exchange, where the focus is giving an opportunity for everybody to dance, regardless of if you know how to dance, if you’re good at dancing, or if you have the money to dance, provides opportunities for everybody to get to experience a sense of freedom in their own body.”