Kylee Deering | Contributing Writer

Buena Vista is home to many clubs and organizations. From BV Buddies to Orientation Team to The Tack, there are so many ways that students on campus are involved. These organizations all take a president, captain or some leader to head up the group as well as a team that puts in the work to keep it functioning as a well-oiled machine. While it’s not always easy, it’s worth it for the outcome of what the organization brings for the students. Friendships, knowledge, responsibility, and teamwork to name a few.

One organization that I was particularly interested in shedding a little light on is the dance team. Most have seen the dance team perform at a basketball half time and a couple have maybe even seen the team at State, but very few know just how much work goes into running this organization. I went to Janice Timmerman to get a little input.

As a member of dance team I’m pretty aware of the work that goes into keeping the team afloat. However, without being in the shoes of those who truly run the organization and hold a leadership position, you don’t fully understand. I went to Janice Timmerman to get a little more insight. Janice is a junior at BV and while she does not officially hold a position such as captain, she assists with a lot of the work a captain would have. The team has many small “behind the scenes” details that keep the team working smoothly. I asked Janice what running the team entailed to find out just what “behind the scenes” things go on in a typical day. She said, “The dance team takes a lot of commitment. Between scheduling and planning practices, choreographing, looking into competitions and travel, picking out costumes, and preparing for new dancers in the future. It can be a lot of work during the busy times, but overall it’s worth it!” These are just a handful of the things that happen on top of the normal student schedule and all very vital to the team. I also asked Janice about how many hours of practice our team puts in each week to give a better perspective on just how much time goes into such an organization. She responded, “Before State Dance, anywhere up to 10-12 hours a week. Earlier and later in the season it’s about 6-8 hours a week.” The team spends a considerable amount of time going over skills and routines to perform at State and basketball half times.

This year was the first year that the dance team operated without a coach. The university was faced with some tough decisions last year and ultimately had to keep BV’s best interest in mind. I was curious to know how not having a coach has affected the team. Janice said, “Trying to be the leader and the teammate, it’s hard to find a balance and I’m sure it’s hard to be a teammate trying to take critiques or suggestions from another teammate trying to fill the void. Not having a coach also makes cleaning routines to make them ready for performances difficult.” Dance team has stepped up in a complicated situation and made the best of what they have. The team oftentimes will rotate people out during practices to watch the routine and give suggestions since we don’t have a coach telling us what to fix. It takes more teamwork and compromise now than it ever did before. Fortunately, we’ve had some outside help from generous people who genuinely care to see the team succeed. One of these people has been Lindsay Martin. Lindsay works in admissions at BVU. She was a dancer in high school and continued on to college where she danced for Morningside’s dance team. Her expertise has helped the team out as she’s stood in as a volunteer coach.

“[Having Lindsay has been] extremely helpful! She has been wonderful to help us through it all!”

Another big element for the team that has been difficult finding balance in without a coach is the budget. Thankfully, we’ve had Amy Santucci to oversee that department. Janice explained that she works very closely with Amy in order to figure out what we can spend for the season and exactly what the money goes towards. Without a coach making decisions on costumes, hotels, and other expenses, it’s important to make sure that the team stays within the budget.

Like any organization on campus, the dance team takes a lot of work to run. Many hours are spent planning and organizing but like Janice said, it’s worth it for the end result. So next time you see a half time performance, I encourage you to think about the hours of preparation that went into those few minutes on the floor.

Photo by Stephanie Steiner
Team photos by Tim McConnell