Dance

The BFA and MFA major programs in dance are rigorous programs with the goal of appropriate preparation for a professional career in dance.

“We introduce our students to elements required for a successful career in dance,” said Mary Margaret Holt, the school of dance director. “These include advanced levels in technique and artistry or expression, personal time management, communication skills, research skills necessary to the creative aspect of dance, good nutrition as well as injury prevention, a strong appreciation for the other arts and sciences, a collaborative spirit and the desire to participate in an art larger than oneself.”

The professors expect students to work hard and take care of themselves.

“You need to get enough sleep, water, and to eat right,” said Amelia Appen, ballet pedagogy junior. “The professors expect us to act professional and be prepared, meaning bringing two to three pairs of shoes.”

Technique classes are taken every day.

“You take modern, character, repertoire, pas de deux, pantomime, plus every Gen Ed class,” Appen said.

Appen has already finished all of her academic classes.

“I’m completely done with my academics, so I can focus on dance,” Appen said. “A lot of people come in saying they will double major, including myself, but it’s practically impossible to do that and graduate within four years.”

Holt said she hopes the students will be lifelong learners.

“We hope they will become immersed in the art of dance in all their classes: dance technique, dance history, body science, choreography, teaching methods, technical theatre, performance classes and related classes in the appreciation of other art forms,” Holt said. “By doing this, we believe they will begin to understand the place of dance in world culture and their place and potential contributions as dancers. We expect the very best of our students in every class they take because this is how they will achieve success in dance and in life.”

The schedule of a dance major includes long hours.

“I practice easily 30 hours a week, give or take with rehearsals,” Appen said. “I’m usually too physically exhausted to study so I just go to the library and stay all night if I have a test the next day.”

There are two auditions every year for The Oklahoma Festival Ballet.

“They usually take 20 people, but sometimes it’s less,” Appen said.

Ballet majors have one performance each semester.

“We perform the Nutcracker every four years,” Appen said. “It involves the kids of the Norman community. There are 17 shows. It’s a really big deal.

Appen said that she wanted to come to college.

“I chose this major because it was the only way I could come to college and still train to be a professional dancer,” Appen said. “You can’t take four years off not dancing for school. It’s a big deal if you take a weekend off.”

The retirement age for ballet majors is early.

“Retirement for ballet is 30 if you are lucky,” Appen said. “I’m already in my prime. But the benefit of the pedagogy major is that you can always teach.

“I would like to dance in a ballet company that does both classical and contemporary ballet. But I would dance anywhere that would take me, paid or unpaid. I expect to get another job to support myself.”

Upon graduation, the professors expect the students to have the ability to establish a successful career in one of many aspects in dance.

“They may become performers with professional ballet or modern dance companies or Broadway tours, teachers, dance company managers or dance administrators, Pilates body conditioning instructors or choreographers,” Holt said. “Some who have double majored also become physical therapists. In any case, the high degree of self motivation, discipline and dedication they must have as dance majors will be an important part of their future professional success.”

Education

The Jeannine Rainbolt College of Education houses three departments: instructional leadership and academic curriculum, educational leadership and policy studies, and educational psychology.

“We educate teachers to teach advanced mathematics in high school and universities and we educate teachers to work with toddlers,” Professor Lawrence Baines said. “However, all majors in education share some features. One, students are experts in their chosen fields. Two, students work in several schools before undertaking a semester-long internship. And three, students are intelligent with a mad, altruistic streak.”

Education is a structured major according to Kathleen Pirog, elementary education senior.

“Education is not like most majors,” Pirog said. “It’s fun.”

The professors expect the students to meet their deadlines.

“Students need to be experts in their field,” Baines said. “But they also have to be able to work well with people who are different from them in every way.”

The students are held to a high standard.

“The professors expect a lot because we will be future teachers and will be held accountable for teaching other people’s kids,” Pirog said.

Thirty hours of observations are required in the education major.

“Observations are interesting,” Pirog said. “They made me think what kind of school I wanted to work in.”

Pirog said that the professors have caring personalities and are always there for you.

“The professors are awesome,” Pirog said. “They have all been teachers, so they have experience.”

Pirog said she wants to teach overseas in Spain.

“I want to work for the department of defense,” Pirog said.

Baines said graduates can teach wherever they want.

“Graduates from the Jeannine Rainbolt College of Education are in high demand,” Baines said. “In an era of quick and easy certification and low teacher expectations, OU is an island of excellence. That is one reason that 100 percent of our graduates find jobs, not just in Oklahoma, but wherever they want to teach.”

Pirog said she wants to teach fifth or sixth grade.

“I’m taking double hours so I can teach middle school as well as elementary,” Pirog said. “If I pass the tests, I can teach second through eighth grade.”

Pirog is taking nineteen hours.

“My entire life is studying,” Pirog said.

Pirog said she had always wanted to teach her entire life.

“I am the sixth generation in a family of teachers,” Pirog said. “I went against the family tradition my first year. I chose journalism, then PR, but I didn’t want to do that the rest of my life.

“I’m so happy I switched. I can’t wait to be a teacher.”

Jesse Stecker is a secondary science education graduate.

“I teach biology and bio-technology at PC North,” Stecker said.

The latest lesson Stecker is teaching is forensics.

“Forensics is fun,” Stecker said. “Kids watch CSI and NCIS, so it’s applicable to their lives. It’s hands on, engaging, requires critical thinking, and I get to teach something interesting.”

Stecker said her teaching schedule is busy.

“I don’t even have mental time,” Stecker said.

Stecker said she does not regret choosing this major.

“I chose this major because I have two passions, science and people, and this is the one major that puts them together,” Stecker said. “Doctors heal people but they don’t change their lives. Teaching is one way to change the lives of young people that will run our nation.”

Modern Language: Chinese

The department of modern languages, literature and linguistics offers courses and degree programs in Arabic, Mandarin Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Modern Hebrew, Russian, Portuguese, and Spanish.

“I would describe the Chinese major as an undergraduate program where students can learn to become competent in the linguistic skills in listening, speaking, reading, and writing of the Chinese language,” Professor Ning Yu said. “As well as become familiar with Chinese culture and various aspects of China including history, politics, and society.”

The professors expect the students to be prepared, to look at the material before class, to study outside of class, and to have questions on the material.

“The classes involve a lot of reading, writing, repetition, recitation, and memorization,” said Bronwyn Donnelson, a Chinese and linguistics senior.

Students in the Chinese major are expected to take 36 hours beyond the beginning Chinese classes.

“I expect my students to make an effort and progress toward the mastery of Chinese language proficiency and the knowledge about all aspects of China,” Yu said.

The teachers are passionate about the Chinese language, according to Donnelson.

“The teachers are all native Chinese,” Donnelson said. “They are extremely excited to teach anyone who’s willing to learn the Chinese language.”

The language classes can be demanding.

“I’m supposed to study about 16 hours a week,” Donnelson said. “I probably only study about half that amount.”

The teachers find multiple methods to teach the students.

“My first Chinese teacher would teach us Chinese word games,” Donnelson said. “We were supposed to pick people on the fly, pass the baton kind of thing. Everyone would pick me, until the teacher was ‘okay, don’t pick Bronwyn.’”

The linguistics major requires the student to study a companion language.

“I chose Chinese because it’s in high demand and it’s an interesting challenge.,” Donnelson said.

Donnelson took French and Spanish in high school.

“Chinese is not like any other language I’ve studied,” Donnelson said. “People are really impressed when you tell them you take Chinese. They automatically assume you’re smart.”

Government agencies look for language skills and may pay extra for having that skill when hiring, according to Donnelson.

“If you happen to be proficient enough, private companies might hire you as a translator,” Donnelson said.

“I hope the students can get governmental positions and jobs in the private sector,” Yu said. “I also hope some students can move on to go to graduate schools to become scholars of China studies.”

Donnelson hopes to work for the state department

“I want to use my language skills and possibly train further in the language,” Donnelson said. “I might also go abroad to teach English.”

Bronwyn is married and has a five-year-old son. In her free time, she spends time with her family.

“I have a husband and a kid, I can’t really ignore them,” Donnelson said.

Visual Communication

The visual communication major is a comprehensive design program that provides students with the aesthetic and technical background for entry-level positions in the design field.

“It’s the graphic design major,” said William Cobb, visual communication senior. “It’s called visual communication instead of graphic design because it branches out into many mediums. It’s a broad program.”

Foundation classes are taken the freshman year. After the completion of the foundation year, students accepted into the visual communications program begin a three year intensive study of the various aspects of visual communication.

Students undergo a portfolio interview to determine their acceptance into the program.

“Portfolio interviews are the most stressful,” Cobb said. “At the end of the first year, the faculty reviews your portfolio and they tell you what area they recommend you go in to. Then sophomore year, they throw everything at you to see if you can handle it.”

A limited amount of students are accepted into the program.

“The program is small,” Cobb said. “Only about 30 people a year are let in.”

There are three professors in the visual communication department, Eric Anderson, Karen Hayes-Thumann, and David Hissey.

Professors expect students to meet deadlines, attend class, and be interactive.

“Professors expect you to be responsible and to manage your own time,” Cobb said. “They’re not going to hold your hand. The professors are concerned with learning and getting better over having natural talent.”

Students study basic drawing and color, lettering, layout, packaging, logo design, publication design, webpage and multimedia design.

“You practice basic lines, kind of like Zen or Mr. Miyagi stuff,” Cobb said.

The program can get busy according to Cobb.

“Sophomore and junior year, I spent about one to two days a week sleeping in the studio,” Cobb said.

There is no set schedule on the visual communication syllabus.

“Time management is the most important thing,” Cobb said. “The second criterion is organization. There’s no set path to follow in the syllabus. You keep working, keep getting critiques and then move on.”

The faculty reviews the students’ work regularly.

“We don’t have tests; we make art,” Cobb said. “

Art school can be expensive.

“It costs quite a bit out of pocket,” Cobb said. “It’s a bit disappointing because we already spend approximately 180 dollars for technology fees. And then you still need to buy a computer and Adobe Creative Suite.

“I bought this Color-Aid for 90 dollars my freshman year. They said it would pay for itself. I’ve used two sheets of it.”

The visual communication classes are three hours a day, twice a week.

“Outside studio, I have about two to three assignments per week and spend approximately 20 to 30 hours per week on the assignments,” Cobb said.

The students and faculty become like a family according to Cobb.

“The walls come down a lot earlier,” Cobb said.

“One night at the studio, we were drunk while working on our projects, which were due for review the next day,” Cobb said. “All the projects were skewed in one direction because we were drinking. The critique was bad but funny. We realized that this work was too delicate to be working drunk.”

Cobb chose this major because he loves art and he doesn’t want to be poor.

Cobb’s ideal job would be making promotional posters in the music field or working on packaging at Hasbro.

“I really love music, so it wouldn’t be work anymore,” Cobb said. “I would be doing what I would have done anyway.”