Scholar evokes change through dance

Many artists may view their work as a means for self-expression or as simply a tool for advancement when carving out legacies of epic proportions. Many may develop a blatant sense of self-preservation, as they fight to keep their dreams from being shattered by the burdens of life.

However, while they treasure their gifts, and work effortlessly to see their dreams come to pass, few will ever view their talent as an investment to the community. It is a rarity to find an artist as fiercely devoted to helping others as 26-year-old Wayne State student Terainer Brown.

Brown is working hard to impact her community, helping to advance Detroit youth through dance. Having first developed an interest in dance at the age of seven, she knew she would devote the rest of her life to the craft. However, it was not until high school that she discovered her passion for educating others.

Now as a fifth-year dance education major, with a minor in sociology, she is working hard to not only advance herself as a dancer, but to uplift the youth in her community.

“I really wanted to give back some of what everyone has poured into me, to students who are underprivileged and can’t afford to take classes at studios,” Brown said.

It is this level of thoughtfulness and commitment that fuels her fierce dedication to helping others, as she teaches free dance classes at Mumford High School in Detroit. Husband and fellow Wayne State student Quincy Brown can attest to her devotion.

“She tries to turn the program around,” Quincy said. “It’s not at its fullest potential. She’s taking what she’s learned here at Wayne State and applies it to Mumford.

“She researches everything that’s wrong with the system so that she can, hopefully, make that difference.”

In addition to teaching dance classes at Mumford, she also works for GEARUP, Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Program, an organization that allows her to extend her affections to inner-city youths.

“We go to different schools and help low income, first-generation minority students to get into some kind of undergraduate program,” Brown said.

She has also used her position as a McNair Scholar to conduct the research necessary to create change in her community. With a focus on underprivileged kids from grades K-12, she has studied the effects that arts education has on students’ academic achievement and social development.

“I want people to remember me as someone who just wanted to help the students, help evoke change in our inner-city schools, to keep the arts alive,” Brown said. “All schools deserve to be treated equally.”

As a first-generation college student, she stresses the importance of education and treasures the opportunity to articulate her experiences through dance.

“I’m so fortunate because so many people go to college for things that they aren’t really interested in, things that they don’t have a passion for,” Brown said. “So they complete their four-year degree, and they come out and don’t even use any of the things that they’ve spent time learning.

“I’m thankful to be able to do what I love to do. It doesn’t feel like a job. When you do something that you love to do, nothing or no one has to motivate you.”

It is this drive and indestructible work ethic that sets Brown apart from others. Friend Janaryann Greene attributes this to her success.

“She has the focus, and there’s nothing you can do to break her from it,” Greene said. “She has a discipline that is beyond her years. She really knows what she wants. She looks at what she doesn’t want and moves in the opposite direction.”

While Brown is working to promote excellence in her community, she maintains the same relentless pursuit in the classroom. With graduation approaching, she plans to attend graduate school with hopes of earning a dual degree in educational leadership and public policy.

As a well-versed performer who has performed internationally and received instruction from Alvin Ailey dancers and the legendary Debbie Allen, she wants to invest her gifts in the community.

She  plans to develop her own school, which will advance inner-city students while challenging the traditional structure of learning.