about us
Mission
The mission of North Carolina Arts in Action (NC AIA) is to transform the lives of North Carolina school children through the arts.
Using dance as a catalyst, NC AIA engages children and their communities through participation in in-school and after-school dance programs. NC AIA believes that lessons learned through participation — hard work, mutual support, tenacity, pride of achievement — will carry over into all aspects of a child's life. The NC AIA curriculum, characterized by high-energy, intensive physical movements and complex dance routines provides children with a rich opportunity for increased physical fitness activity. NC AIA programs are inclusive, encouraging each child to strive for his or her personal best.
Background
North Carolina Arts in Action uses dance, an art form embodied by every society, as an enjoyable way for young children to develop discipline, self-esteem and a desire to excel. When children are able to express feelings and ideas through artistic movement, they gain self-awareness and often self-acceptance discovering new talents. The program becomes an incentive for students to achieve in the classroom, learn to work as a team, and develop respect for one another.
A close relationship is in place between Arts in Action and the National Dance Institute of New York (NDI: New York), a non-profit organization founded by former principal dancer of the New York City Ballet, Jacques d'Amboise. Jacques serves as the vice president of the North Carolina Arts in Action board of directors and provides guidance to North Carolina Arts in Action's Executive Director and Artistic Director. He is recognized as one of the finest classical dancers of our time and has been contributing his skills for over 30 years in the field of dance education. For additional information, see www.nationaldance.org.
Other National Dance Institute affiliate programs across the country have been very successful in metropolitan areas such as New York City, Santa Fe, Los Angeles and Aspen. North Carolina Arts in Action has modeled its program on these successful programs set in place by NDI: New York.
In January 2006, Arts in Action launched its 4th grade pilot program at Mel and Zora Rashkis Elementary School in Chapel Hill and is expanding within Rashkis Elementary and to other schools in the community and across the state.
Shirley Berger, Founder, North Carolina Arts in Action
Shirley Berger arrived in Chapel Hill with a vision to reach, through dance, as many children as possible in the North Carolina schools. In 2005, Shirley created North Carolina Arts in Action an affiliate program of the National Dance Institute (NDI) of New York founded by Jacques d'Amboise, former New York City Ballet principal dancer. Under Shirley's leadership in January 2006, the pilot program for North Carolina Arts in Action was launched at Mel and Zora Rashkis Elementary School in Chapel Hill, NC and continues to grow. In Santa Fe, Shirley served for many years on the board of directors for NDI of New Mexico where she witnessed the transformation of the children through this unique dance program. She also sponsored a complete NDI program at Alvord Elementary School in Santa Fe.
Shirley was involved in many non-profit organizations during her 13 years in
Santa Fe. She founded and established a state-wide yearly competition in
Santa Fe with Pro Musica of Santa Fe, and the Chamber Music Festival for young aspiring artists. She also sponsored a hospital program for qualified high school students to acquaint them with the career possibilities in the health care professions. In Cleveland, she continues to provide college scholarships to high school students.
Jacques d'Amboise, Founder
National Dance Institute of New York
Recognized as one of the finest classical dancers of our time, Jacques d'Amboise now leads the field of education with a model program that introduces thousands of school children each year to the magic and discipline of dance. In 1976, while still a principal dancer with the New York City Ballet, Jacques founded the not-for-profit National Dance Institute of New York in the belief that arts have a unique power to engage and motivate individuals towards excellence. His contributions to arts education have earned him numerous awards and honors from the Peoplefirst Honoree People Magazine to The National Medal of Honor to the Kennedy Center Honors, to name only a few.
An Academy Award, six Emmy Awards, The Peabody Award, the Golden Cine Award and the Education Association Award for the Advancement of Learning Through Broadcasting were awarded for He Makes Me Feel Like Dancin', a 1984 film documenting Jacques' work with the National Dance Institute.
With Jacques' assistance, there are now NDI affiliate programs throughout the country using NDI's teaching methodology to over 45,000 children annually. These programs are in California, Colorado, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Ohio, New Jersey, Virginia and now North Carolina!