Investing In Experience: USU Professor Uses Grants to Enhance Student Learning in the Arts

LOGAN, Utah — Utah State University’s Caine College of the Arts provides grant opportunities for faculty members, allowing them to expand their professional experiences and bring expertise to the classroom.

Stephanie White, assistant professor of theater, has benefited from these resources, using grants and differential tuition funding to make classroom improvements, attend conferences, further her education and travel abroad to bring new perspectives to her students at Utah State.

Funds from the differential tuition at CCA contribute to classroom enhancements such as upgraded art materials, guest lecturers, equipment and studio improvements.

“There was a closet-like classroom with horrible acoustics where we were teaching acting classes. We applied for funds to make the room better for teaching theater and dance and make it a working space,” White said. “We had a sound engineer design acoustic panels for the space, put in a sprung floor and mirrors with curtains. All of that was made possible by students’ contributions through differential tuition. It’s an investment in their own educational space.”

White holds two Bachelor of Arts degrees in liberal arts and sciences and speech pathology and a Master of Education from Utah State University. She specializes in dance, movement and choreography. She also acts as the program coordinator for Arts Access in CCA.

In 2022, Stephanie completed her Master of Fine Arts in Dance from Montclair State University, which was made possible through grant assistance.

“I started the MFA in the summer of 2020 and our cohort was doing 8 hours of dance on Zoom, which killed us all. We learned a lot about film, technology and staging but it was also a lot of philosophy,” White said. “The second year was 2021, and I traveled to New Jersey for six weeks. It was so helpful to have the support of the Caine College of the Arts. I was grateful that they were willing to invest in me. I could really come back and be a more confident teacher with a greater perspective of my art form for my students.”

Beyond the classroom, White has been able to present her research across the United States. White presented at the National Dance Education Organization conference in Seattle in 2024 and recently submitted for the upcoming conference in Detroit.

Recently, White has used grant funding to travel to Costa Rica and Spain, engaging in cultural dance exchanges and teaching students abroad.

“In Costa Rica, we taught ballet, jazz, tap and musical theater. The main stage was outside. They'd have nets for some of the insects, but you just got used to sweating all the time. When we finished dance class, we ran over to the ocean and jump in. We were treated royally,” White said. “It was really an incredible experience. They are such talented young people, and there was no language barrier, you know, because we were dancing.”

In Spain, White studied the Gaga technique in Barcelona and traveled to Seville and Granada to take private Flamenco lessons.

“In order for us to make certain that our students are ready for and engaged in the world, we have to know the world a little bit ourselves,” White said.

For more information on faculty grants and resources at the Caine College of the Arts, visit the CCA faculty and staff resources page.