American Ballet Theatre principal ballerina Misty Copeland has recently launched a girls’ scholarship programme in Rwanda, with the humanitarian non-profit organisation MindLeaps which aids some of the city’s poorest children. Copeland is no stranger to child poverty so becoming an advocate for disadvantaged youth has been a way for her to give back.
Many of the children Copeland has been working with in Rwanda are homeless and lack access to school. MindLeaps uses dance classes to improve the children’s cognitive development and prepare them for more structured learning environments, and it then adds classes in English and IT to prepare them for either boarding school or the workplace. Copeland has introduced a girls’ programme as until now it has only been available to boys.
Copeland officially launched the MindLeaps Girls Programme, and additionally awarded a dance student the Misty Copeland Scholarship in order to go to boarding school. MindLeaps is currently raising more funds for the Misty Copeland Scholarship and the girls’ programme through the International Artists Fund. Dance can be a great escape from every day life and at MindLeaps in Rwanda it is offering children the chance to prepare their lives in a different way. Dance is able to give them hope and goals, used to apply to life in the wider context.
It is clear Copeland’s experience at MindLeaps in Rwanda was eye-opening, in meeting the girls and especially leading them through a basic ballet class. Also during her visit a young boy showed her the concrete tunnel under the street where he sleeps, the boy Copeland later decided to offer to sponsor in order for him to attend boarding school. Through dance, the children have been offered an escape whilst learning to connect their body and mind, develop their physical coordination and use words to describe what they’re creating.