Keith “Skip” Costa

STRIVING FOR ARTISTIC INNOVATION

As a faculty member since 2013, Director of Dance and Instructor of Contemporary Dance, Choreography, and Performance, Skip Costa has made huge strides regionally, nationally, and internationally for artistic innovation within his InterARTS™ approach to dance and movement studies.

“I have worked to achieve excellence within university teaching standards and achievements, including the Dance 100: Introduction to Dance course that I designed and which now serves as a university general arts education elective with a single class enrollment each semester of 80-96 students,” he said.

Costa earned his bachelor degree from Southeastern, received his masters of fine arts in dance and choreography from George Washington University in Washington D.C., and earned a pre-graduate certificate in movement studies from Naropa University in Boulder, Co.

Music and Performing Arts Department Head Jeffery Wright said Costa has traveled and performed around the world, mesmerizing his viewers with his choreography. In addition to learning dance and teaching others, Costa has shown outstanding leadership.

“He was the only American College Dance Association board member from 2014-2017 that was a part-time dance faculty member not on a tenure track and the only one from the United States to serve at the level of part-time dance faculty,” Wright said. “At one point, he was elected to serve by his peers.”

Costa teaches masterclasses at the ACDA Conference representing the artistry of dance at Southeastern and takes students to perform choreography and participate in masterclasses with other nationally known teachers and choreographers.

“From day one, I have been revising and redefining the entire curriculum of the dance program to push Southeastern into the forefront of dance as an academic field of study that consistently gets noticed both regionally and nationally at ACDA, as well as with nationally-ranked universities offering graduate programs in dance,” he said. “Once our students apply for admission to graduate programs, they showcase their accomplishments at Southeastern.”

“Whether it is securing $130,00 in external funding for the creation of a new dance studio, providing performance opportunities for our students, or creating a general-education course that introduces the wider Southeastern student population to the art of dance, Skip is one of the most driving forces for the performance arts at Southeastern,” Wright said.

Costa said he has abundant energy and commitment to devote to Southeastern’s dance program.

“I see endless possibilities to support and artistically challenge our dance students in their journey to find their purpose in life, not only as better students, but as better human beings.”