Hey guys!! I’m Millie and I’m currently a second year studying politics. This year, I have had the pleasure of being your comp rep, and I have loved every second. Dance has been a huge part of my life ever since I can remember, and being able to carry it on over the last two years has been one of the highlights of my uni experience. I’ve absolutely loved having the opportunity to compete in the advanced jazz, contemporary, lyrical, commercial, and wildcard teams this year as well as choreographing both wildcard and my duet, which won 2nd place at all four competitions. Not only this, but I represented modern in the workshop/improv rounds at Liverpool and Northumbria comps, making it through at least two rounds at each. I am so proud of everything we’ve achieved, and I really enjoyed using leadership skills that I think would be transferable to the president role. I am super confident and outgoing and always up for a chat, and ALWAYS up for a Wednesday night social ;)
Ellen has done such an amazing job as this year’s president; it truly would be a hard act to follow. She and Lucy have made such an effort to make modern a friendly and inclusive environment, something I am committed to continuing and building on even more if I am elected as next year’s president. With this in mind, one of my main ideas is to implement a ‘buddy system’, where each fresher would get a ‘dance big sister’. This has been tried and tested in other societies, and I think it would really help bridge the gap between freshers and older years, as well as between different class abilities, ensuring everyone feels as though they have someone to ask questions, get advice from, have a chat with, and generally just a friend.
Even as a committee member, I am always confused about where to look for info on classes, rehearsals, timings and performances. We currently spread everything across Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, meaning you might have to do a bit of digging to find the right info. Next year, I would love to streamline our communications into 1 channel, maybe something new or just one of the apps we currently use, to make everyone’s already busy lives a little bit easier. Alongside this, this year we tried to create a joint calendar for members containing all classes, workshops, extra rehearsals, socials, and other events. It was a brilliant idea; however, it didn’t really work out in practice. I really want to try and make this work, as again, I think it would help us all (me included) massively with organising our already super busy schedules.
I was really grateful to receive the ‘best technique’ award at Liverpool comp this year, hence why one thing I would love to implement as your president would be a big push on technique, not just in the form of extra classes but really prioritising it in class too. Whether you joined Modern as an advanced-level dancer or a complete beginner looking for a community and fun Wednesday nights, we all want to be the best we can be. I think focusing on improving as dancers would make us all feel better approaching comp season, shows, and other special performances and really allow us to put our best foot forward.
I would be incredibly proud to take everything I've learned over the past 2 years as both a dancer and committee member and bring it into the role of president. Modern has given me so much, and I would love the opportunity to give back to the society by helping it continue to grow, stay inclusive, and become even more organised and fun for all members. I am full of ideas, passionate about modern, and sooo excited about the year ahead, and I would truly be honoured to lead Modern into another successful year. Love you all, thanks for reading (if any of you actually made it this far ;)) 3
