Awards

Be it pedagogy, advocacy, or promotion of dance, NDS members make important contributions to the discipline.  We have developed the following awards to recognize these contributions and encourage members to make nominations during the nomination period.

Make A 2018 NDS Award Nomination:
If you wish to nominate a member for any of our awards listed below,  please complete our online awards nomination form. Once that is received and membership is verified, the application form will be sent.  Nominations are due by November 1, 2017.

Questions should be sent to the Awards Chair, Judy Clark.

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Award Categories:

Dance Legacy Award 
This is the National Dance Society’s (NDS) highest award for exemplary, lifetime contributions of national or international significance to dance, dance education, the arts, and NDS. The nominee shall have provided meritorious service to NDS, other dance organizations, dance education, or to the dance field in general.

Dance Honor Award 
This award recognizes dance educators who demonstrate distinguished service to dance, dance education, and NDS.  The service may be in teaching, administration, leadership, research, pedagogy publications, choreography/creative activities, professional presentations, or mentoring. 

Dance Scholar Award 
This award recognizes dance educators who have been and are producing scholarly/creative works of significance at the community, state, regional, national, or international levels in dance research, evaluation, professional writing, choreography, or other dance works. 

P-12 Master Dance Educator Award 
This P-12 Master Dance Educator of the Year Award recognizes excellence in dance education of dance professionals who are employed full time at a school or in a school district and who devotes minimally 50% of his or her teaching time to dance education. 5. 

P-12 Master Dance Educator of the Year in Physical Education 
This P-12 Master Dance Educator of the Year in Physical Education Award recognizes excellence of professionals who teach dance within a comprehensive physical education curriculum. The teachers are employed full time at a school or in a school district. Teachers may have responsibility for teaching grades that cross different instructional levels. The teacher must use recommended guidelines for infusing dance instruction in to the annual physical education curriculum. (See the application form for the guidelines.) 

College/University Master Dance Educator Award
This College/University Master Dance Educator of the Year Award recognizes excellence of dance professionals who are employed at a college or university. The nominee may demonstrate distinction in curriculum design, teaching methodology, choreography, understanding cultural heritage, role modeling, student dance appreciation, student performance, or professional leadership. 

Global Dance Educator Award
This award recognizes dance educators who have made meaningful contributions supporting dance internationally. The contributions and service in other cultures may involve: increasing knowledge of global dance to students, increasing the involvement of dance educators in learning about global dance, increasing international communication among dance educators, or providing international services to dancers.  

Dance Promotion in the Community Award
This award recognizes dance educators who have made outstanding contributions to dance outside of the P-12 schools or college/university settings at the local, state, or national levels. The contributions may be in some of the following categories: dance promotion; teaching excellence; choreography; performance; or leadership in establishing, maintaining, or managing dance projects, events, and programs. The nominee may be recognized for work accomplished through a variety of settings, such as studios, leisure and recreation programs, faith-based environments, or specific culturally-based programs

Young Dance Professional Award
This award recognizes dance educators who are 30 years of age (or younger) and employed full time in a school, a school district, or an institution of higher education. The dance educator devotes minimally 50% of his or her teaching time to dance education.

Dance Advocate Award
This award provides a way to recognize individuals who are not members of NDS but who, through his or her work, have contributed significantly to the general purposes of the organization. The award recipient shall have made important contributions to dance, dance education, and NDS from his or her profession (through, for example: the arts, business, general education, government, medicine, or public health). 

Graduate Dance Excellence Award
This award recognizes a future dance professional at the graduate level majoring in dance or an arts-related field and who displays leadership, scholarship, creative activities, or service during his or her professional preparation.  

Undergraduate Dance Excellence Award
This award recognizes a future dance professional at the undergraduate level majoring in dance or an arts-related field who displays leadership, scholarship, creative activities, or service during his or her professional preparation.  

Dance Ovation Award
This award provides an opportunity for members to thank individuals who impacted his or her dance life,career, studies, or someone that is admired for work in the profession. This award can be presented to a respected professional, mentor, key educator, colleague, teacher, student, or family member.