ABSTRACT
Instructors in higher education arts programs have a responsibility to promote active citizenship and to encourage their students to use the creative arts as a vehicle for positive social change. From the outset of the process, the choreography was either inspired by or generated by the students. It was important that the process as well as the content of the work related to ideas of community. In the classroom, empowerment is an outgrowth of feminist pedagogy, acting as a force that holds a community together, giving students the energy and potential to act for the betterment of the population. During the final exam presentations, it was observed that many of the students had become emotionally attached to their project proposals and were excited about their work. Even though the projects will not be completed during the semester, the benefits of the community-themed creative process combined with the written projects were sufficient validation to proceed with similar work in the future.
