Help Bring Dance to Round Lake

Hello! My name is Robin, and my family and I are working to launch a new dance studio in the Round Lake area. Recently, a nearby municipality has implemented changes that, in our view, unfairly exclude families based on economic status and those who primarily speak Spanish. This could affect up to 40% of Round Lake’s population, leaving many community members unable to participate in communal spaces. This includes dance classes. The quality of the program significantly decreased and now our community is paying the same amount (maybe more) for a less educational, less opportunity-driven and less growth-focused program.

It is crucial to me that everyone in our community—regardless of economic background or English fluency—has the opportunity to dance. Everyone should have access to a program like what we used to have. To make this vision a reality, we need your help to get the ball rolling. Join us in bringing Odyssey Dance to life by supporting our first steps.

Here are our plans for making our space inclusive:

All forms will be in both Spanish and English, with the option for other languages such as Russian available.

Offering scholarships and support for those with financial difficulties.

As we build revenue, the plan is to hire or train staff to have simple understanding of the language. So much of our community is ESL speaking. We should be able to speak to everyone politely at the bare minimum.

We will regularly ask for feedback from the community and that includes asking about how we can better help everyone regarding communication and the program itself. This is a group effort.

Also, we will translate on the spot using translator apps. While this is not ideal, it is communication, and that's what we need in this community.

Please stay tuned for more updates.