Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page.

Page 16 Spelman Spotlight AUC Dance Students Move In Graceful Fun By Carolyn Robinson Feature Reporter The Dance Department of Spelmen College presented “Choreo - Case”, a lecture and dance demosntration by the various dance classes, Friday, December 4, at Read Hall. Ms. Zyznar and Ms. White, physical education instructors, put together the program to illustrate what the classes have learned throughout the semester and to introduce the elements of dance. Ms. White’s students from her Ballet III and IV class began the demonstration with a basic warmup routine using the ballet bars, then they did movement exercises across the floor. Although the session was just for warm-up, the dancers were very serious and concentrated on every move ment. Ms. Zyznar explains, "A professional or a serious student in training begins everyday with a technique class. He can choose from a wide variety of dance forms — Ballet, Modern, Jazz, Tap, and Ethnic. Class is a time to learn, to make mistakes, to correct them and to continue dancing.” Ms. White's Jazz class delivered a lively and upbeat performance. The movementsof the dancers were very relaxed and sensual. Following the Jazz class, Modern I Intermediate’s brought the pace down to a more moderate level. Ms. Zyz nar, who instructed this group, placed a lot of stress on move ment combinations. The beginners started out with the basic elements of dance. They performed the first element of dance, which is space and the second element, which is time. The dancers showed the relationship of time in different speed levels, such as regular, fast, and slow - motion. Daphne Goodson, a student in the Modern I Beginner’s class, feels the class is more than just a dance class. She states, "My class challenges me intellectually and has helped me gain confidence and more coordination. Though the music is hard to get into, I strongly suggest others to get into a dance class.” Ms. Zyznar also lectured on the ways in which a choreographer works. She ex plained the different influences that may inspire a choreographer to create a dance: the people they see and work with, day to day ex periences, feelings, moods, ac tually almost anything. Three student choreographers gave sneak previews of the dances they are working on for the spring concert. Valerie Johnson, a sophomore Spelman student, choreographed a jazzy dance to Micheal Jackson’s, "Working Day and Night. She was inspired by an experience that she had as a younger girl, when she and her friends chased the little boys all day. Melody Ruffins’ dance was quite different from the others. The Spelman senior choreographer’s, intentions were to show the different type of people in the world, interac ting, in everyday human ex periences. The final choreographer, a Morris Brown College student, was inspired by the kids he observed playing in the streets on a hot summer day in Harlem. Darryl Brown, a sophomore from Miami, Florida, chose to do his work to a very alive tune, "Hot-Hot”, by Deb bie Jacobs. He used a lot of locomotion in his dance and extremely sensual movements. A student in Ms. Zyznar's ad vanced Modern Dance class, Mr. brown chose to set the dance at such a fast, upbeat pace to reflect on the strong vibrations he received from the kids, and to express the energy they possess ed. Mr. Zyznar, who originated Spelman’s premier “Choreo - Case” program, believes too many people have the wrong concept of dance. She hopes the demonstrations and the lecture will give students more knowledge about this moving form of art. She and her dancers of the A.U.C. Dance Company are looking forward to their spring production next semester and hopes “Choreo - Case” has inspired the audience to attend the program and see the finished product of the hard dedicated work, that takes place in the classrooms and rehersals. Saida A wad Musse: Foreign Exchange Student Spelman Exchange Program Worthwhile by Sebrina M. Bragdon Because of its reputation of academic excellence, Spelman College attracts young women of many diversified backgrounds, cultures, and nationalities. In addition to having students representing almost every state in the U.S., the college has foreign exchange students from the Caribbean Islands, the hispanic nations, and Africa. Saida Awad Musse is one of Spelman’s foreign exchange students. She is from Somalia, a small country of East Africa about the size of Texas, that is often called the "Horn of Africa” because of its position and shape on the African continent. Saida’s journey to Spelman began when she chose to learn to speak English so that she could study abroad. She first came to the United States in the summer of 1980 and stayed with a Somalian family in Washington, D.C. After attending a small college in Mississippi, she heard about Spelman College and decided to apply for enrollment. Saida is currently enrolled as a sophomore at Spelman majoring in International Relations. She plans to utilize her degree in this field in obtaining a position as a foreign service officer. When asked why she chose Spelman College to pursue her educational and career objec tives, she replied that her two reasons for choosing Spelman are “first, itisablackcollegeand second, it is a women’s college.” The fact that Spelman is situated in a black, educational setting also influenced her choice to attend Spelman. So far Saida says that Spelman is all she expected it to be and that she is very happy and comfortable living on Spelman’s campus. She is also content living within the A.U. Center, but she quickly points out that there is a great difference in the young people of the Somalian society and the Black - American society. “The young people in Somalia are much more conservative than the young people here because of the Muslum religion that is practiced in Somalia,” she replies. Saida sees the students at Spelman as being friendly but also very competitive. She says, “There is alot of competition between girls - that is construc tive.” She feels that Spelman College allows young Black women to compete in achieving their goals without the bonds of racial and sexual discrimination. Although Saida is from a different culture and of a different nationality, she is a part of the sisterhood at Spelman College. In surveying her past accomplishments and her future aspirations, it is evident that Saida Awad Musse has the qualities of the ideal Spelman Woman: she has a goal, a plan to reach it, and the determination to achieve it. by Carla D. Johnson Reporter Dr. Howard Zinn, Chairman of the Department of History and Social Science, was the inspirator behind the Spelman College Exchange Program. Dr. Zinn wanted the exchange program to be implemented between Spelman and in stitutions in the north. The main purpose of the exchange program was to provide both the Spelman student and the ex change student from the par ticipating institution with the advantages of contacts and ex periences which they could not get at their home colleges. The program was designed so that a Spelman student selected for the program would attend a northern institution for one semester or an entire year. In return, students from par ticipating institutions would spend a semester or year at Spelman. Bethel College, Illinois Wesleyan, and North Central colleges were the*first schools to participate in the exchange program when it began during the 1960 - 1961 school year. In 1981 the purpose, qualifications and terms of the exchange program are almost the same as in 1960. Students wishing to spend their junior year on exchange must apply during their sophomore year. All Spelman candidates are inter viewed by someone from the Spelman administration and faculty. No discrimination will be made with regard to race or color. Males, however, are en couraged to exchange with Morehouse College. All Spelman students will be ex pected to return to Spelman for their senior year. Presently Spelman has a formal exchange program with the following schools: Mt. Holyoke College — Massachusetts Mills College — California Crinell College — Iowa Smith College — Massachusetts Vassar College — New York Wellesleyan College — Ohio hange must be approved by the chairman of the department in which the student is majoring at Spelman. The exchange program is an enriching and fulfilling portion of the Spelman experience. All sophomores who are interested in the Exchange program are invited to talk with last year’s exchange students and Spelman College administratorsaboutthe exchange program.