Dance Education

The mission of the doctoral program in Dance Education is to cultivate critically engaged teacher-educators, researchers, and educational leaders who forge new pathways in dance and education that are humanistic, accessible, inclusive, equitable, and excellent for all learners. As the only program in the nation dedicated to educational research in dance, we prepare our students to unearth educational issues impacting underrepresented communities and sectors of the field through a creative praxis of embodiment, theoretical exploration, empirical research, teaching practice, and leadership activity. As a community, we celebrate diverse dance traditions and encourage innovation through opportunities for rigorous coursework, teaching practice, peer engagement, research assistantships, conferences, publishing, and individualized research advisement. Our students succeed in a variety of professional roles, such as leading PK-12 dance teacher preparation programs, serving as educational directors and district-wide arts supervisors, launching educational consultancies, and leading dance programs in community colleges and universities.

 Our dance education community affirms dance as an essential form of embodied experience that shapes learning across diverse global contexts. Through dance education experiences, people of all ages can imagine, create, think critically, collaborate, understand culture, shape identity, and communicate meaning about human experiences. Our doctoral community welcomes dance educators who celebrate many dance traditions and aim to transform the next generation of dance education through impactful work with youth, coaching adult stakeholders such as K-12 dance educators, classroom teachers, teaching artists, studio dance educators, college students, university instructors, as well as informing administrators and policymakers.

Nested in the arts mecca of the world, the doctoral program in dance education brings together renowned faculty from across the college with the vibrant dance community of New York City. “Dance for All” has been the core philosophical identity at Teachers College for over 100 years. Teachers College is recognized by scholars as a primary incubator for the development of dance education as a field in PK-12 schools and universities, and it has played a principal role in cultivating and empowering dance education leaders since the early 1900s. As the nation’s premier institution in the teaching of teachers in all fields, Teachers College is the ideal place to earn a doctorate in dance education and to join the legacy of dance education leadership.

Learn More

Click the image below to watch a video about the Dance Education Program