Lelia Rosenkrans named 2018 Whitbeck Award winner

Janea Snyder — Wed, 02 May 2018 17:45:39 +0000

Lelia Rosenkrans’ academic interests pull in seemingly opposite directions. She is passionate about dance and the artistry and self-expression that comes from the creative process. And she is equally in love with science and the possibilities of discovery through disciplined research. Both, she discovered, have the capacity to transform lives. At ��Vlog��ý Little Rock, Rosenkrans didn’t have to choose between the two. On May 12, she will graduate with a BFA in Dance Performance with a minor in chemistry. She is this year’s recipient of the Alpha Kappa Psi Edward L. Whitbeck Memorial Award, a prestigious award given to one student chosen by the Faculty Senate Honors and Awards Committee who has demonstrated exceptional scholarship, leadership, character, and citizenship. The award comes with a $2,000 prize. “Lelia is that rare student whose talents truly transcend their major,” said Jessica Scott, assistant director of the Donaghey Scholars Program. “Even though she is a gifted dancer, she has the mind of a scientist.” Growing up in Springdale, Rosenkrans started dancing at age 4 at Rhythm and Shoes Dance Studio in Tontitown. “I fell in love with jazz,” she said. “I was a shy kid and jazz gave me the opportunity to be someone else, outgoing and spunky.” She started ballet at age 7 but didn’t become a serious ballet student until age 15. She comes from a family of educators: her father is a professor of animal physiology at the University of Arkansas, and her mother is the associate vice president of Learning and High School Relations at Northwest Arkansas Community College. When it came time to choose a college, she looked near and far. She auditioned for a few conservatory programs and was accepted to Wellesley College in Massachusetts as well as the University of Arkansas, which is close to her home in Northwest Arkansas. However, she was drawn to ��Vlog��ý Little Rock, which offers the state’s only Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance Performance. “I knew I wanted to have the option to take both dance and pre-med classes,” Rosenkrans said. “I came to ��Vlog��ý Little Rock as a chemistry major and then decided to have a dance/chemistry double major. Eventually, I realized that I could major in dance and minor in chemistry, and still achieve my goal of being prepared for medical school.” What sealed the deal was a Donaghey Scholars Program scholarship, and with it the ability to study abroad and to graduate with no debt. During her first two summers, she worked as a medical intern in Sri Lanka and as an English teacher in Peru, both of which gave her invaluable perspectives on global policies. “In Sri Lanka, I saw a country striving to aid its people through free health care, yet patients were turned away simply due to a lack of time and space to treat everyone,” Rosenkrans said. “In Peru, I was inspired by the community’s connection to their Incan farming traditions. However, I saw a community whose grains were being purchased for pennies in comparison to the price they are sold for in grocery stores within the United States.” As part of the Whitbeck Award competition, Rosenkrans wrote an essay on the rights and responsibilities of citizenship. “I find myself returning to the idea of acknowledging the humanity and needs of others,” she wrote. “This involves creating and fostering an environment with meaningful cross-cultural dialogue, striving for and supporting breakthroughs in science and technology that help humanity, and advocating for and preserving communal works of beauty.” With her eye on medical school, Rosenkrans completed the pre-medicine courses, taking as many as 23 credit hours per semester and finishing with a 4.0 grade-point average. Her friends joke that she never sleeps, and she admits that between dance rehearsals and lab work, she stays busy. As a junior, she received one of the state’s Student Undergraduate Research Fellowships to study the biological, psychological and social impacts of a modern dance class. Her research examined salivary biomarkers indicative of fitness training and stress in modern dancers and compared the biomarker levels to dancers’ self-reflection surveys. The results provided evidence in support of modern dance as a source of stress relief, and also served as a step toward developing more specialized nutritional and cross-training guidelines for modern dancers. “She took her two passions and combined them into a very novel research project,” said Dr. Brian Berry, chair and associate professor of chemistry. “I was impressed with the way she approached the idea and executed the work.” Rosenkrans also works as a research assistant for , where she completed an eight-week internship last summer. The scientists there liked her work so much that they asked her to continue working remotely. Her current work involves annotating behavior traits indicative of Parkinson’s disease. Outside of the lab, Rosenkrans spends much of her time in dance studios. As part of her BFA major, she created four original dance works. She has performed in the spring Bodyworks, the fall Dance Harvest, and with the Department of Theater Arts and Dance’s annual dance tour to high school and middle schools across the state. Yslan Hicks, senior faculty and chair of the Department of Theatre Arts and Dance, has watched Rosenkrans progress as a dancer, choreographer, scientist and scholar for four years. As a first-semester freshman, Rosenkrans replaced a senior dancer in a highly athletic piece. “I have known many first-semester freshman; I have seldom witnessed a comet on stage,” Hicks said. “Lelia was all light and speed and fire. Her broader academic and personal goals are often fixed on making things better for others. Even before her university experience she has given of herself with a global awareness.” Off campus, Rosenkrans has performed with the Arkansas Festival Ballet’s productions of “Alice in Wonderland,” “Peter Pan,” and “The Nutcracker.” She is a member of UnTapped, the state’s only professional dance company, and she teaches dance workshops for members of the UnTapped Youth Ensemble. “I love leading workshops in schools,” she said. “I have experienced the unity and joy created through free community dance workshops as children and adults alike find themselves possessing untapped capabilities within a body they have known for years. The discovery is truly empowering.” Despite a hectic academic schedule, Rosenkrans has mentored younger Donaghey Scholars and served as an ambassador for the College of Arts, Letters and Sciences and as a student leader in Chi Alpha Campus Ministry. She has volunteered more than 200 hours at Arkansas Children’s Hospital, the 12th Street Health and Wellness Center, the VA Hospital and the ��Vlog��ý Little Rock theatre box office. “Her work has benefitted the university and contributed to the central Arkansas community, and through it all, she has grown as a person, a dancer, a scholar, and friend,” Scott said. After commencement, Rosenkrans plans to take a year off – to travel, study, reflect, and focus on her future – before starting medical school in fall 2019. This summer, she heads to eastern Germany to study dance improvisation and then to India to become certified to teach yoga. “I find myself both forever grateful and inspired by the experience I have been afforded during my time at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock, and I hope to continue my traditions of scholarship, leadership and character throughout the rest of my life,” she said.

Love of dance leads to bright future for Miss Arkansas contestant

Ajani Oyindamola — Tue, 08 Aug 2017 16:36:58 +0000

Taylor Jaggers’ first experience with dance was not love at first sight. When she was 3, Jaggers, now a junior at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, disliked dance lessons so much she convinced her father to take her for secret ice cream dates and long rides in the truck so her mother wouldn’t know she was skipping class. Now the 20-year-old Rison native has found her calling as a performer and dance instructor. Jaggers is preparing for her future by earning a Bachelor of Fine Arts in dance performance at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock, which is the only program of its kind in Arkansas. “I think it’s amazing,” she said. “I get to dance and learn about dance all day. That is a dream for any dancer. My dance professors have impacted me greatly.” Jaggers is also a member of the Chancellor’s Leadership Corps and the Missionary Baptist Student Fellowship. After she graduates in 2019, Jaggers plans to become a professional dancer and open a dance studio. Jaggers already found a love of teaching as a dance instructor at MK Studios in Pine Bluff.

��Vlog��ý Little Rock dance student and Miss Arkansas Pageant contestant Taylor Jaggers performs her dance routine. Photo by Lonnie Timmons III/��Vlog��ý Little Rock Communications.

“There is a special relationship between a dance instructor and student, and I see that now that I am a teacher,” she said. “Dancing impacted my life so greatly. I love sharing that, and I love seeing the effect dance has on kids.” Her experience in dance gave her an advantage in the talent competitions while performing in pageants the past two years. Jaggers earned the opportunity to compete in the Miss Arkansas Pageant by winning the Miss Grand Prairie Pageant at Stuttgart in January. In June, she was one of 44 young women who competed for the title of Miss Arkansas. The goal of her platform, “A Chance to Dance: Working to Achieve a Sound Body and Mind,” is to give an opportunity to experience dance for kids who cannot afford lessons. “Dance has many benefits,” she said. “Kids build lifelong friends through dance. Dance keeps kids physically fit. Dance , which is special to me because my grandmother had Alzheimer’s.” As part of her platform, Jaggers teaches dance classes at the Boys and Girls Club in Pine Bluff. Local businesses in Pine Bluff also sponsored a 9-year-old girl so she could take dance classes. Jaggers’ mother, Lynda, was amazed at the reaction children gave her daughter during classes. “They would run up to Taylor and hug her,” she said. “Taylor just blossoms in front of them, and the kids just light up. It’s pretty amazing to see her have a positive effect on kids.” Through the Miss Arkansas Pageant, Jaggers won two scholarships. She was selected as the recipient of the Fine Arts Marketplace Interview Award and a $1,000 scholarship. The award is given to contestants within their field of study who are the most prepared for their future career. Jaggers also received a $500 scholarship for being one of the top five fundraisers for the Children’s Miracle Network. Several women from Jaggers’ hometown of Rison helped her raise money by making and selling washcloths. Jaggers and the other contestants visited Arkansas Children’s Hospital, which serves as the state’s Children’s Miracle Network hospital. “It was really eye opening to see where the money you were raising was going to,” Jaggers said. “To know that we have an impact on the lives of so many kids we haven’t met is incredible.” For someone who now spends so much time participating in pageants, Jaggers’ first experience was not encouraging to her mother. Her first pageant experience as a 1-year-old ended with Jaggers’ mother carrying her across the stage when the normally cheerful and friendly toddler refused to greet the public. Despite a rough start to pageant life, Jaggers is eager to compete and is already preparing for her next pageant in August.

��Vlog��ý Little Rock dance student Taylor Jaggers practices her dance moves. Photo by Lonnie Timmons III/��Vlog��ý Little Rock Communications.

- University News Archive - ����Vlog��ý Little Rock

Lelia Rosenkrans named 2018 Whitbeck Award winner

Love of dance leads to bright future for Miss Arkansas contestant

- University News Archive - ��Vlog��ý Little Rock