In mid October, we sent Mike D Chicago to Santa Barbara for a jam packed week-long artist residency! Mike taught 9 dance classes, one teacher training workshop, and connected with 250 students across 5 different locations. He worked with the students at Santa Barbara High School, La Cumbre Junior High, and UCSB students and staff. He shared culture and choreography of traditional Chicago dance forms, and provided professional development and community building amongst Santa Barbara teaching artists and community partners. 

Mike D partnered with a DJ to mold and shape the music with the choreography, something that excited students of all ages, and made classes feel like a creative process that everyone got to have a hand in.
Students were introduced to new styles of hip hop, with Mike D bringing his experience of Chicago Footwork, House Dance, and Hip Hop to the classes.

During the teacher training, the team focused on Chicago footwork technique and choreography, as well as the importance of mental health and wellness. Our teachers are always encouraging their students to treat themselves with kindness and compassion, so Mike made sure our teachers were taking care of themselves in the same way. 

Santa Barbara Director Ari Gillam said of the teacher training, “It was amazing to see our teachers take what they learned on Wednesday night and then directly implement it into classes in the following days. There was a change to some of the dance styles they used but also the way they encouraged each other and the students to have confidence and try new things.” Mike D also shared, “Normally as teachers and educators, we give give give so much and then when it’s time to care for ourselves, we put that on the back burner. If we spend time making sure everybody else is okay, we have to do the same thing for ourselves. It was great to see that resonate with them.”

Thank you to our Santa Barbara community for welcoming Mike D with such amazing energy. We love seeing so many beautiful connections happen within our netwerk, and know that the work happening during this opportunities will lead to building more bridges and expanding our netwerk even wider. Mike D expressed how powerful it was for him to see the versatility of the Santa Barbara teachers, and his excitement to bring back his learnings and growth to his work in Chicago. Participating teachers and site partners both asked the same thing: “When can we do this again?”