PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

OUR ENTREPRENEURIAL MINDSET

It’s a momentous year for the Elmhurst University community.

We’re marking our 150th anniversary with a yearlong celebration of our rich and distinctive history. We’re returning to in-person activities, building carefully toward a post-pandemic normal. And we’re elevating Elmhurst as a hub for innovation and entrepreneurship, expanding all the ways we nurture new generations of forward-thinkers and idea explorers.

This issue of Prospect beautifully captures this rare intersection of past, present and future.

The pioneering spirit that led 14 students in 1871 to enroll in the Elmhurst Proseminary lives on today in Elmhurst University’s strong culture of innovation. In these pages, you’ll read about how that spirit has inspired graduates to lead at the cutting edges of commerce, technology and humanitarian service; and how it’s sparking a flurry of innovative activity across campus right now.

I hope you’ll come experience our entrepreneurial mindset for yourselves this fall, when we plan to return to campus for in-person learning, living—and celebrating!

TROY D. VANAKEN President

THE CLASS Modern Dance Technique WE DIDN’T MISS A STEP

THE PROFESSOR Amy Lyn McDonald

ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF THEATRE

AND DANCE, HEAD OF DANCE PROGRAM

Amy Lyn McDonald and her students found ways to keep dancing—and learning— despite the challenges of a pandemic.

THE POWER OF DANCE Dance can have a profound impact on students. I’ve had students tell me that our classes have changed the way they think about themselves and their bodies. So I feel a responsibility to give them the best experience possible every day.

CONFRONTING THE PANDEMIC When the pandemic halted in-person learning in March 2020, I had no idea how we would teach classes. I had no idea how we would put on a dance concert. But I knew we had to find a way. I had students who were counting on me, and I wasn’t about to let them down.

LEARNING AND ADAPTING We established Facebook pages for each class, where we would meet for instruction and where students could comment and ask questions. We tried to make it as similar to in-person class as possible. I got instant feedback from students, which was important to me because I wanted them to feel heard. If students needed additional instruction, I arranged one-on-one FaceTime calls. We did a lot of learning and adapting, and somehow it worked.

A VIRTUAL CONCERT Our spring 2020 concert featured 60 students performing in 26 different dance pieces, in styles ranging from ballet to musical theatre. Most were recorded in students’ homes—in their living rooms, on decks, in basements. All those performances were knitted together by our technical director, [Assistant Professor of Theatre] Rick Arnold, and one of our students, Ashley Liljeberg, into a video concert that has received thousands of views. I still don’t know how we managed to pull that off.

RETURNING TO STAGE By the fall we were able to do modified in-person instruction. For each class session, half of the students participated remotely and half, in-person (masked and observing social distancing). Then the two groups switched places for the next session. We were able to get back to the Mill Theatre for our fall concert, which was recorded without an audience for our YouTube channel. We restricted the number of students on stage at a time and we were masked, but students were so overjoyed just to be on stage together again.

THE COOLEST THING Directing those remote concerts is probably the coolest thing I’ve done in my career. But there is nothing like being in the dance studio in Faganel Hall. It’s a windowless room, but I like to say it’s the sunniest room on campus. You just have to bring your own sunlight. My goal is that everyone who enters that room should leave it feeling more energized and more creative.

THE STUDENT VIEW

“I observed one of Amy Lyn’s dance classes before I had even decided to enroll at Elmhurst, and I knew right away that it was what I had been looking for. She creates such a positive environment. There is no competition among the dancers, just a commitment to striving to improve. That’s what makes the dance studio a special place on campus for so many of us.”

— CLAIRE CHRISTIE ’22

DIGITAL MARKETING MAJOR

Watch the virtual dance concert at elmhurst.edu/VirtualDance.