HPSD Special Programs
Congratulations! Being selected to participate in the Special Programs at Hyde Park School of Dance is an honor. HPSD’s Special Programs encompasses our Company, Scholarship, and Teacher Trainee programs. Your status as a Special Programs student means that you have exhibited commendable commitment to your dance education and a desire to be pushed in a professional direction. Whether in performance, teaching, management, choreography, or costuming, your future in dance is up to you, and your specialized involvement at Hyde Park School of Dance through our Special Programs comes with additional responsibilities that are designed to set you up for success.
HPSD Special Programs Expectations:
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Maintain your Special Programs Folder as a journal of your progress. You'll track make-up classes, volunteer hours, and other program requirements in this folder. You'll turn this folder in for review as noted under the Review Process below.
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Keep notes on corrections you are given in class. We want your folder to be a valuable part of your training, so please feel free to make personal notes on your training by adding notebook paper to the back of the folder.
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Commit to 16 hours of volunteer time per semester. There are several ways to do this: students may sign up to be a teacher assistant for the semester, help backstage during a performance, assist with studio maintenance, or participate in other opportunities as they arise throughout the year. Parents may also volunteer for performances and events. Please see the volunteer section below for more details.
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Have perfect attendance. HPSD Special Programs participants are expected to have perfect attendance. All absences must be approved and made up during the same session in a class of the same level or below that is not at capacity. Make-up classes should be scheduled in advance by contacting HPSD’s office using the new Excused Absence & Make-Up Request form linked above, in-person, via email at admin@hydeparkdance.org or via phone at 773-493-8498. The administrative team will track make-up classes and report them to the Artistic Team. You should also fill out the "Make-Up Class Sign-In form" in your folder and have your make-up teacher and ask your make-up instructor to sign it.
Special Programs Review Process
Special Programs folders are collected for review by HPSD's staff throughout the session. HPSD staff also review class attendance rosters at this time to ensure that dancers are following the attendance and make-up expectations of our Special Programs.
Please be prepared to turn your folder in for review in accordance with the following schedule:
For Company students, folders will be checked by their Company leaders on the first Saturday Company class each month, starting in October, as well as at the end of each session.
All Special Programs students should turn in their folders to the HPSD office for review around the end of each session. For Fall this will be between December 12th and 19th, 2022, and for Spring between May 15th and 20th, 2023.
Once reviewed, dancers will receive their folders back in class, or will be contacted to pick up their folder in the HPSD office.