"...a community that has taught me kindness and compassion"

I had a terrible freshman summer and lost virtually every friendship I had built over my first year of college. I was feeling extremely down and was not looking forward to another year of college. However, a friend I worked with that summer was heavily involved with our college's swing dance troupe and encouraged me to look into it. I decided to start swing dancing and found it to be the most amazing form of community building I had ever experienced. I learned to express myself, to celebrate creativity, to love what I do, and to do what I love. I found a family through swing dance, a community that has taught me kindness and compassion and brought so much color to my life

~ Non-UConn Collegiate Dancer