My name is Wess Staats, Founder and Executive Director of The Academy for International Movement Studies based in Boulder Colorado,USA.We are looking to recruit participants for our Summer Program in Greece on the island of Thassos as well as for the regular academic year. The following will give you a better understanding of The Academy forInternational Movement Studies and our goals with a brief description of Thassos.

The Academy for International Movement Studies is a oneof a kind institution that provides theunique opportunity for highschool students to live and travel abroad in what will be a fully accredited, 4 year college preparatory academy. It is in the early stages of inception but is in full swing in marketing for the four year program starting in the Fall of 2010. Additionally, there will be a Gap year as well. This summer however, weare running a pilot program that will resemble a regular academic semester. In July we wish to travel to Greece and set up our base for a 7 week semester.

This is a very exciting and unique opportunity for students to live, learn and travel abroad while doing their passion of dance/ or any artistic pursuits in the performance arena. The premise behind this idea is to allow young dancers/movers/artists and the artistically curious gain exposure internationally while being facilitated under the umbrella of an academic atmospherewhile learning abroad.

Our Goals:

1.To have fun in a positive and rewarding environment.

2.To offer hands-on leadership skills in a fashion that best prepares students forcolleges and future careers.

3.To explore and learn from rich and vibrant cultures.

4.To develop ambassador skills on local, regional, and international levels.

5.To academically challenge and inspire students.

6.To lead via hands-on negotiating international logistics planning.

In addition to Greece, we are researching places such as Florence Italy, The Netherlands, Guatemala, Chile, New Zealand, Nepal among others, as places to travel to and set up base for semester study and live, learn and participate in another culture. Each country of origin will have a base camp to teach regular academic/college preparatory classes with morning technique classes and afternoon rehearsals. The semester's completion, apart from academic testing, would culminate in performances at local venues in the country of origin. Furthermore, the Academy (AIMS) will have their students participate inoutreach programs that involve the community such as teaching children andvolunteer work related to the environment, animal rescue, etc.

About Our School Program:

The Academy for International Movement Studies offers kids and teens Dance programs from junior high school through college ranging in ability from beginner to advanced with a daily developmental emphasis.Teen Dancers learn techniques from a variety of styles, create choreography of their own and of the faculty culminating in international performances, or seek an international Dance adventure with unique cultural experiences twelve months of the year.

The Academy for International Movement Studies fosters individuality and honors the creative spirit. We believe that a child's education in the Arts helps to educe the creative mind and expand our capacity for learning.

Our staff come from many countries throughout the world. The depth of influence on ones creative exploration from distinct cultures is unparalleled in artistic and educational opportunities from regular educational environments in the USA.

AIMS employs instructors proficient in the techniques of Modern, Ballet, Jazz, Hip Hop, Street and Improvisation. The variety andextensive cross cultural experinces of our staff bring the highest standard in Arts education.

In addition, AIMS focuses on strengthening kinesthetic, emotional and atmospheric perceptions on how sound and music color one another in their movement and musical intentionality. Participants gain agreater sense of self and creative processes that are invaluable tools in not only the arts but in communicating and living in this world in general.

Essential Objectives in our Dance Classes:

1.The exploration of the body's effectiveness through fundamental principals of balance, alignment, and strengthening; norms that govern the development and efficiency in motorskills.

2.Gaining a greater understanding of the essential building blocks of movement that encompass form, kinesthetic, and anatomical awareness.

3.Investigating the fundamental components to composition in choreographic as well asImprovisational structures in order to heighten the students' awareness of his/her personal movementvocabulary/style.

4.Exploring and appreciating the roots of Performance Art, Modern Dance, Jazz, Hip Hop, Street Dance, Improvisation and Ballet in its historical and social evolution.

Teaching Philosophy

The Academy for International Movement Studies' philosophy in teaching examines the landscape of information created by the spontaneous integration of movement and sound. While guiding participants through the technical aspects of body awareness in building a sound knowledge of an efficient way of moving, Aims incorporates a variety of venues through which participants may discover the joy of personal exploration. Students learn to recognize and respond to multifaceted components that make a musical language while working simultaneously with the language of movement. This helps to widentheir range of movement vocabulary, enhance performance quality, and strengthenthe integration of body, mind, and spirit for future dance endeavors.

The beauty of the human spirit in motion is a wonderful vehicle for expression and Dance and, as an Art form, it continues to significantly challenge and transcend social barriers. It is The Academy forInternational Movement Studies challenge as an educational institution to encourage the exploration of the barriers that separate the diverse artistic communities and to foster innovative partnerships between artists and public communities. Our program advocates responsibility and collaboration, encouragesinterdisciplinary explorations to create change, and cultivate audienceeducation and growth across the borders.

The intention of the AIMS's Dance Program is to provide opportunities that encompass a variety of ingredients for new perspective on the art of movement and the physical mechanics of how one moves. Our methods of teaching function as the initiator of impulse in the student that helps awaken the possibilities for new perception of ones personal movement style, creativity and awareness. The Academy for International Movement Studies strives to facilitate new environments that help to broaden the students' perception of his/herself as a performer andcreator/choreographer as he/she learns to be true and open to the moment whilethe unknown unfolds.

As a team player in the Academy life enhancing knowledge and skills are learned, leadership, international logistics planning and more. We will travel to wonderful performance venues,dance, perform and learn about the various cultures and regions.

We seek exceptional people who have the ability and willingness to teach and learn the leadership skills of our unique positive educational model.

About our Teachers

The Academy for InternationalMovement Studies hires educators from a wide variety of backgrounds. During the non-school year our educators hold various occupations, such as college professors and students, school teachers, and professional performers/dancers.Their occupations range from careers in the Arts, law, dentistry, business, computer programming, medicine, education, engineering, and accounting.

An Overview of the School and its Philosophy

The Academy for International Movement Studies (AIMS) is a unique learning institution. As a co-ed secondary school, it offers accredited college-preparatory courses, with an extra-curricular focus on Movement Studies/Dance.

AIMS'S goal is to provide traditional education in an experiential setting, emphasizing reading comprehension, communication, critical and disciplined thinking, and deductive reasoning in a classroom environment that fosters an appreciation for learning. Our classroom structure, with a teacher student ratio averaging 1:2, promotesdaily active discussion in which peers and teachers are equal partners in the learning process.

AIMS fosters individuality,accountability, creativity, and international diplomacy through the every day challenge of community living, small class size, international travel, dancing and performing. Classes at the Academy for International Movement Studies are scheduled, as they would be in a traditional high school. Each class will meet 5 times per week, for 55 minutes. Our academic calendar is divided into four 7-week quarters.

The Academy for International Movement Studies accommodates students requiring advanced classes. AP courses are realigned with the standards set by the College Board and classes are teacher-led, rather than independent study. Per the new College Board requirements, all AP syllabi are turned in to the College Board prior to the beginning of the school year for course audit leading to official approval by the Board. Students will take the AP exam upon completion of the course.

Additionally, the faculty can tailor instruction to accommodate individuals with special needs in the classroom. This individualized instruction, along with a small class size and nightly help from a mentor, allows students who struggle in traditional class settings to thrive academically and personally. Success in school coupled with the natural confidence that comes from strengthening one's skills in Dance and performance boosts self esteem and increases the initiative of our students.

http://www.wix.com/AIMSDANCE/The-Academy-for-International-Movement-Studies-

There, you will find our curriculum, course descriptions, faculty information and more.

Additional Links: Blogs

http://academy4internationalmovementstudies.blogspot.com/

http://www.xanga.com/acad4internationalmovtstudies

Thank you kindly for your consideration and best to yearthis year of 2009.

Sincerely,

Wess Staats

Wess Staats

Founder and Executive Director, AIMS

The Academy for International Movement Studies

3160 3rd Street

Boulder, CO

80304

PH: 720.317.7550

email: acad4internationalmovtstudies@gmail.com

Website: http://www.wix.com/AIMSDANCE/The-Academy-for-International-Movement-Studies-

About the Founder and Director, Wess Staats:

Wess Staats' work is quite unique for American modern dance, in part because her background, influences, and interests are international innature. She received her MFA at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Staats has been teaching creative movement, Movement intentionality for the stage/intensive movement for actors, contact improvisation and Modern Dance forover 15 years.

She has been recognized by choreographers, dance teachers, dancers, audiences, and the press as a remarkable choreographer of contemporary dance. She is a recipient of numerous grants and Fellowships in the UnitedStates. Her work has been presented at Jacob's Pillow International Improvisations Workshop, The White Mountain Summer Dance Festival, Bennington Choreography Project, ACDF, Sound Dance, Stonybrook College and through TheField at PS 122 among others. She was a member of The Carina PiaggioDance/Theatre Company, the Phhhft Dance Company and Improvisational TheatreTroupe of New York City. Her multi-media solo concert, "FallingAwake", premiered this summer at the Fringe Festival in Boulder Colorado.

Her most recent activity includes performances in Guatemala City (Nov, 2008) and Paris, France and Athens Greece at the 21st World Conference for Dance Research in September 2007. As a result of her performance in Athens, she was asked to return and teach a Master Workshop for the Kapodistra University in Athens, Greece from October 26 through October 29,2007. Additionally, She Recently performed and taught a week workshop in Guatemala City, Guatemala in November 2008.

Summer 2009 on the island of Thassos, Greece

This summer we will be basing our program on the Greek island, Thassos. "The Island of Thassos is a real treasure for the country of Greece. Unlike the rest of the Greek islands, the Island of Thassos has muchmore to offer than just beautiful beaches and water. It truly retains all the Greek culture and tradition that has generally been lost on most of the Greek islands, as they have become tourist centers that now cater to the many tourists of multi nationalities. Thassos also has a rich history and archeological sites scattered through out the island. You can combine amusementwith archaeological interests.

Kavala was a colony of the Thassians. On the island one can still see monuments remaining since its glorious days from the past, such as the walls of the fortress of the ancient city, the temple of Pythian Apollo and the sanctuary of Dionysos with its choragic monument. An important reason for choosing Thassos for our program is the fact that it is the only island that lies close enough to mainland Greece, which would allow our school to take excursions to many other archeological sites, and beautiful cities that are spread throughout Northern Greece(Macedonia).

Thassos is the most northern island of the Aegean Sea, lying almost 7kilometers, or a little over 4 miles distance opposite of the coastline ofEastern Macedonia. Thassos' total size is approximately 393 km² and has apopulation of over 13,000 people. It is a province of the prefecture ofKavalacomprising, in terms of administration, 1 municipality(Municipality of Thassos) and 9 communities.

Sea:The beauty is reflected in the crystal-clear waters thatwash its shores. Environmental pollution is unknown here. Everything remains in a pristine state.

Beaches:There are more beaches than on any of the other Greek islands. Many of the beach's have trees coming all the way down to the beach. Apart from the developed complex on Makriammos beach and several campsites, there are fine, spotlessly clean beaches all along the island's coastline."