When colleges want to cut costs and streamline their offerings, arts programs can be among the first on the chopping block. And yet, four schools have recently introduced new degrees in dance: Ithaca College in Ithaca, New York; Saint Anselm College in Manchester, New Hampshire; Samford University, outside Birmingham, Alabama; and Vassar College, in Poughkeepsie, New York. To get a new major approved, faculty must demonstrate that there’s a genuine hunger for more dance on campus. They must lay out the benefits not only for future students, but also for the institution as a whole—its reputation and its bottom line.
Why Add a Major?
The campuses of Ithaca, Vassar, and Samford already boasted a robust dance presence, with students able to take technique classes, join faculty- or student-run dance companies and clubs, and even minor in dance. What prompted the leap to a full-degree program?
“We had a lot of students who wanted more,” says Alisa McCool, assistant professor of dance at Samford and the architect of the school’s BA in dance, which launched in 2025. “Dance isn’t just pliés and tendus.” McCool also saw a chance to fill a gap: Another university in Birmingham had shuttered its dance department before closing altogether, leaving the area without an option for aspiring college dancers.
Samford University dancers in performance. Photo by Elizabeth Andrews, Courtesy Samford University.
Vassar’s BA in dance, planned to start in fall 2026, grew out of a similar desire to expand the college’s existing dance offerings. About five years ago, faculty members, with input from a committee of students, designed two minor tracks, which Vassar calls “correlates”: one in dance performance and the other in dance studies, which is more cross-disciplinary. After continuing to add new dance classes each year, “We realized we were already doing the work of a major,” says Miriam Mahdaviani-Goldstone, lecturer and chair of dance. She and her colleagues pled their case to the administration and received unanimous approval to add a BA.
Ithaca’s BFA in dance and choreography for musical theater, set to commence in fall 2026, follows a larger restructuring that led to the creation of the School of Music, Theatre, and Dance. While Ithaca already offered a major in musical theater, “Adding a true dance major fulfills the promise of this new school,” says Daniel Gwirtzman, associate professor of theater and dance performance.
Saint Anselm’s BA in dance, which opened in fall 2024, didn’t evolve from an existing minor. Instead, tap dancer Aaron Tolson was recruited to create and oversee a whole new dance department. “This was already a liberal arts school that believed strongly in the arts,” Tolson says. “What was missing was a performing arts degree, and the president felt like this was the right time.”
What’s in a Major?
Courses in dance technique, composition, history, theory, pedagogy, and stagecraft are standard major offerings, but they’re just the tip of the iceberg. Starting a new degree also means tailoring the curriculum to the school’s ethos, as well as students’ wants and needs—while finding ways to stand out in a crowded college market.
For example, “Vassar values collaboration across disciplines,” says Mahdaviani-Goldstone. Engaging with faculty in other departments “enhances dance students’ academic experience.” Like many degrees at Vassar, the new BA in dance includes a wide assortment of electives, allowing students to pursue individual interests within the dance-major framework.
Ithaca’s new BFA stands out not only for its tight focus on musical theater, but also for its “balance between the practices of dance and choreography,” says Amy O’Brien, associate professor of theater and dance performance. “We’ve designed a curriculum to support and uplift students who come in more as practitioners than choreographers, and vice versa.”
At Saint Anselm, Tolson has built a major that allows each student to focus on a primary dance genre. “While it’s important to be well-rounded, you’re most likely to want to work in your best style,” he says. To help accommodate students with different skills and dreams, the curriculum includes a full semester of study at Broadway Dance Center in New York City. Students also work closely with Tolson as an advisor: “I want to put them in the right position to achieve their unique goals.”
Ithaca College dancers rehearsing Daniel Gwirtzman’s Guests Only. Photo by Mike Titlebaum, Courtesy Ithaca College.
The Intangibles
Tolson’s one-on-one mentorship model is by design—and Saint Anselm isn’t the only school where students will find a lot of faculty support. Small cohort sizes can be a big perk of joining a brand-new program. “If a student wants to delve into a certain subject or style, we can have those conversations and find the resources,” McCool says. Samford’s first full group of dance majors this past fall included nine freshmen, two juniors, and one senior, and based on these pioneering students’ experiences and ideas, McCool says, “our BA has so much room to grow.”
In general, majoring in dance—rather than minoring or dancing as an extracurricular activity—lets students delve deeper into the art form. “They’ll absolutely gain proficiency and knowledge that will fuel their creative ideas and broaden their opportunities,” Gwirtzman says. But academic enrichment isn’t the only benefit of earning a formal dance degree.
Having a dance major on their transcript and resumé “reflects students’ hard work,” Mahdaviani-Goldstone says. “If their next step is auditioning for companies, applying to graduate school, or seeking a job in the arts, that credit shows that they’re serious.” Meanwhile, for faculty, securing a new dance major “acknowledges that we work at an institution that values dance,” she says. “It says the school is proud of what we bring to the campus.”
Saint Anselm College dancers onstage. Photo by Gil Talbot, Courtesy Saint Anselm College.
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