Dear dance community, 

 

As the Department of Dance moves into its new building, the UI Youth Ballet and Community Dance School classes will remain in Halsey Hall for the 2026⁠–⁠27 academic year.

 

The new Dance Building must first meet the scheduling needs of the Department of Dance's undergraduate and graduate programs. As a result, the department cannot provide our school with the studio access our class schedule requires. To give the UI Community Dance School time to address longer-term space needs, the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences has made it possible for us to remain in Halsey Hall for the coming academic year. This arrangement gives our school continuity while we prepare carefully for the future.

 

We are facing new financial challenges. New university expectations mean that our program must generate more revenue and begin paying directly for access to resources previously available to us through the Department of Dance. We must now pay for studio and theater use and purchase our own classroom equipment to replace what we have historically shared with the department. That equipment includes sound systems, computers, pianos, and, most expensively, ballet barres.

 

Our school can only continue to operate if it at least breaks even. That means tuition and fees will have to increase in order to begin covering these new costs. Everyone on our staff understands that many, perhaps most, people in our community are facing financial pressures of their own. We have spent many hours discussing how to set tuition at a level that will sustain the school without putting classes beyond the reach of the people we serve.

 

Our goal is to keep the price of each class as low as we reasonably can so that as many children and adults as possible can afford to study with us.

 

Even with a small tuition increase and added facilities fee, maintaining our present class sizes will not be enough. We're asking our community to do more this year.

 

If you danced with us in adult classes during the past year, we hope you'll register for fall. If you've been away for a while, we invite you to re-enroll and look forward to welcoming you back to the studio. If you have room in your schedule and budget, please consider adding an additional class or signing up for our unlimited package.

 

For students in our elementary levels, please consider signing up for the full level rather than only the required weekly classes. Full-level enrollment is priced at a substantial discount—40 to 50 percent less than registering for each class individually. Monthly payment plans will also be available to make full-level enrollment possible for more families.

 

I also ask you to make a direct, personal invitation to someone who has not yet found us. Think of someone who has wanted to dance but assumed that dance study was no longer available to them, or who never expected a dance class to be a welcoming place to learn. Share with that person what our classes have meant to you or your child, and invite them to join us.

 

Thank you for building community with us.