As Paramita Bhattacharyya, the Internationally acclaimed Kathak Dance exponent, accepts the volunteer position of the ‘Mentor and Decision Committee Member’ at the National Dance Education Organization (NDEO) based in Maryland (MD) for their newest initiative ‘Independent Sector Mentorship Program’ (ISMP), she proves, once again, that the practice of performing art and an extraordinary talent can bring in exceptional opportunities to help people and the community by educating them the Dance Art. Paramita thus becomes a dance educator among the small 6.11% of dance teachers of Asian ethnicity in California.
Dance helps us grow the ability to move flexibly, increases concentration and critical thinking power, helps to stabilize mental health, and on top of everything, it works to direct us to stay focused in today’s super-fast and very competitive world.
NDEO maintains very high criteria for its acclaimed members and follows a strict selection process for any of its dance education initiatives. The organization, with a mission of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), is initiating the ISMP project to help dance educators in a private studio structure in any independent sector. The initiative will mainly focus on helping postgraduate dance students from Universities or any performing dance artist looking to establish a dance teaching center in the USA. Mentoring makes a difference in a student’s psychology, and a study shows that students with a mentor are 55% less likely to skip school.
“Any volunteering work for a good cause, and especially if it is for kids, school, and University students, is always there on my agenda”, notes Paramita.
Ms Bhattacharyya has been selected to represent NDEO in the West Coast region as the organization extends its ‘ISMP’ initiative from its Maryland-based operation in the East to the West side of the Nation. She will be reporting to one of the NDEO chairs based in Florida. In a cross states collaboration team structure, Paramita will be responsible for supervising, collecting data, analyzing, and mentoring a mentor/mentee work format.
A trained Kathak dance artist based in Los Angeles, Paramita holds one of the highest dance education degrees from India, ‘Sangeet Prabhakar’. She has been recognized by the ‘World Book of Records, London’ for her dance work commitment through the pandemic time, received many awards, appeared as a judge for dance competitions, and jury on award committee panels in India and USA. She likes to perform on stage and online as needed, educate people about dance art through online training series, workshops, and webinars, and take on responsibilities to create dance awareness.
Her recent works include a performance in the 2022 salon series of the New York-based MDD dance organization in an effort to work for social change through performing art, at Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) 2022 dance series for peace through cultural exchange, and at California Dances Festival organized by CDEA, the affiliated California chapter of NDEO, held in Santa Rosa El Molino Performing Art on April 22, 2023, for Diversity campaign.
“I want to make an impact and develop awareness for the importance of dance as an education, use advanced body movement technique in dance practice, and relate it to how the brain responds to it in increasing self-confidence”, mentions Bhattacharyya when asked about her feeling of accomplishment by accepting the ISMP initiative.
As an advocate for diversity, equity, and inclusion in dance education, Paramita understands the importance of providing opportunities for aspiring dance teachers and creating an inclusive environment for all. With her experience and expertise, she is well-positioned to make a significant impact on the lives of those who are passionate about dance and eager to share their knowledge with others. All our good wishes to her in accomplishing her mission in the future.
