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PROGRAM: Ifetayo Youth Ensemble
Title: Dance Teacher
Specialty Areas: African, Ballet, Modern
Location: Brooklyn
Reports to: Youth Ensemble Program Associate

Organizational Mission:

Ifetayo's mission is to prepare young people and their families for all aspects of their lives through comprehensive and holistic programs that help to empower them to become self-sufficient, productive adults who are actively engaged in the improvement of their communities. This mission is carried out as we work to achieve the five primary objectives of the organization which are:

1. to develop cultural awareness and self-esteem by exposing youth and families to traditional African artistic forms and their evolution into contemporary cultures;
2. to provide youth, families and communities of African descent with the tools required to become self-sufficient and to transcend challenges that are perpetuated across generations;
3. to support youth, families and communities of African descent to reach their optimum potential by attaining a harmonious balance between the mind, body, and spirit and through proper nutrition, exercise, and cultural awareness;
4. to create leaders for local neighborhoods and international communities, and
5. to develop, document and disseminate a comprehensive, African-centered approach to youth and community development.

Program Summary:
The Ifetayo Youth Ensemble is a pre-professional performance company comprised of 43 African American and Latino youth between the ages of 11 and 24. As the oldest, most distinguished and rigorous performing arts entity within Ifetayo, it supports the development of young artists through four interconnected aspects of the program. High-level arts training and performance have always been at the core of the Ensemble, and over time these have been coupled with personal development initiatives. The Ensemble also offers artistic training that prepares its members to create and perform original works about pressing social issues. For example, the most recent production, "The Advocate: Who is the Mastermind?" was an investigation into the historical and global dimensions of the prison industrial complex. The final component of the Ensemble is a training program which prepares senior students to assume leadership in the program in the areas of teaching, arts management, and creative direction. In 2005 and 2006 two such trainees, who were also graduates of the Rites of Passage Program, were hired as Ensemble Associates.

Position Description:
The Dance Teacher will be responsible for creating, implementing and developing a pre-professional dance curriculum and related activities for youth in the Ifetayo Youth Ensemble. The Dance Teacher will be a part of a multidisciplinary team that will work with the youth and coordinate a wide range of group and individualized arts activities.

Key Responsibilities:
Essential duties include but are not limited to the following:

• Responsible for the development of a pre-professional dance curriculum and lesson plans appropriate for students enrolled in classes with the specific dance discipline
• Curriculum must include an introduction to the history of the dance and its connection and relatedness to the African Diaspora
• Responsible for teaching principles and specific techniques and styles within the discipline
• Introduce students to movements and breathing techniques as it relates to the specific dance
• Introduce age appropriate dance theater techniques for a demonstrating performance and understanding of staging and choreography
• Teach problem solving techniques through the arts, as it relates to every day life
• Use dance lessons as a vehicle to develop activities designed to encourage critical and creative thinking skills as well as build self-esteem
• Submit monthly progress reports on our state of the art electronic evaluation module on students in which you evaluate the implementation of related goals and children's assessment of related activities
• Submit daily attendance record to Program Associate
• Submit written anecdotal observations of significant interactions with students and parent to the Program Associate on as needed basis
• Submit invoices in a timely manner (invoices are due the 1st day of the month)
• Activities should result in concrete outcomes such as dance piece, choreographed movement and expression appropriate to the level of students that will be displayed in some type of venue such as an exhibition, performance and in the program's annual presentation etc.
• Maintain a safe working environment in workshops and classes at all times
• As a member of the Ifetayo educational team, assist in the overall planning and implementation of program policy
• Work closely with the production team and attend all staff events and meetings as requested.
• Be available and present at all rehearsals, dress rehearsal and end of session presentations

• Strong interest in youth development and developing youth through the arts
• Bachelor's degree, Bachelors in Fine Arts or significant demonstrated experience in specific dance discipline
• Background as a practicing artists, with a minimum of two years teaching experience in school's and/or community based programs in youth development
• Strong interpersonal skills, an ability to relate to diverse populations and work with both management and direct service staff
• Strong communication skills, both oral and written
• Good organizing, planning, and presentation skills

You must act as if it is impossible to fail.

Ashanti proverb