PCA Alumna Inducted into National Honor Society for Dance Arts
Congratulations to PCA alumna Betsie Stevens (Class of 2014) who was recently highlighted in Belhaven University’s promotional literature! Betsie is currently a senior and is pursuing a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance Performance at the university’s Jackson, Mississippi campus. She was recently inducted into the Belhaven University’s chapter of the National Honor Society for Dance Arts (NHSDA) based on her artistic merit, leadership, and academic achievement.
Betsie Stevens also received the Bezalel award for outstanding artistic achievement which is awarded to the dance major who has made major artistic strides and accomplishments in the areas of performance, choreography or production. Her daily dance schedule consists of 5-10 hours of dancing in technique, choreography, and improvisation classes as well as rehearsing and teaching modern and ballet.
While at Belhaven, Betsie has had the privilege of taking several classes and being cast in works by numerous renown guest choreographers and teachers from around the world. Last summer she attended the Bates professional dance festival in Lewiston, ME. At the beginning of this year Betsie became a member of the National Dance Education Organization a “non-profit organization dedicated to the advancement and promotion of high quality education in the art of dance. NDEO provides the dance artist, educator and administrator a network of resources and support, a base for advocacy, and access to programs that focus on the importance of dance in the human experience.” To be eligible to join NHSDA, you must have a cumulative GPA of 3.5 or higher, an excellent character reference from a dance faculty member, and accrue 45 points in Artistic, Academic, and Leadership strands.
After she graduates this May, Betsie says, “I am open to the plans that God has in store for my life. I have looked into and have received interest from companies on the east coast. I am interested in dancing with dance collective or companies possibly in New York, New England, and Europe. My plans after college are still unclear but am excited to see where God calls me next within the field of dance.”