The Wisconsin Dance Council records document the major activities of the council from 1966 to 2005, with no significant gaps or omissions in the chronological progression of the documents. This collection was accumulated during Cowan's involvement with the Wisconsin Dance Council as Secretary, Executive Secretary, and Executive Director. Major programs documented in the collection include awards, workshops, conferences, and publications. Also documented are the proceedings of board and membership meetings of the organization, which highlight the relative importance of various programs throughout the organization's history. The organization's evolving membership as well as the publicity materials associated with its programs are also well documented in the collection. In the collection, the activities and programs of the WDC are primarily documented by final products -– such as programs, newsletters or minutes -– that were distributed by the WDC internally or to the public; very few materials show the processes involved in the quotidian operation of the organization.
The materials in this collection are broken into eleven series: History and Founding Documents, Meeting Materials, Directories, Publications, Workshop and Conference Materials, Awards Materials, Surveys, Education Committee Materials, Collaboration Materials, Fundraising, and Photographs.
The HISTORY AND FOUNDING DOCUMENTS series contains four sets of records: one folder of undated material collected by the organization to show the history of the organization; a second folder containing the original proposal for a Wisconsin Dance Council from April 16, 1966; three folders containing the board meeting minutes from 1966, the council's first year of existence; and a final folder containing the organization's amended bylaws from 1980. The first file, called simply “History,” contains several examples of brochures that mention the WDC's mission and accomplishments as well as an essay written by a former WDC board member and professor emeritus at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, H. Clifton Hutchins, titled Wisconsin Dance Council: The First Decade 1966-1976.
The MEETING MATERIALS series is composed of two categories: Annual Meeting Materials and Board Meeting Materials. The Annual Meeting Materials consist of folders arranged chronologically from 1967 to 2005. The folders contain statements and reports from the WDC's annual membership meetings as well as agendas and minutes from those meetings. Several folders (specifically, those from 1973, 1974, 1976 and 1979) also contain annual budgets for the WDC, and some contain programs from annual meetings. The Board Meeting Materials consist of folders, also arranged chronologically from 1967 to 2005, that contain, in addition to agendas and minutes from WDC board meetings, other materials distributed and discussed at these meetings. These materials include: membership reports, occasional rosters of board members and officers, and a few proposed budgets. Nearly every folder in this sub-series contains some piece of financial data in the form of quarterly financial statements, treasurer's reports, or statements of receipts and disbursements, but full budgets are rare. Annual budgets and/or budget drafts can be found in folders from 1973-1976, 1978, 1980, 1981, and 1995.
The DIRECTORIES series is also composed of two categories: Membership Directories and Statewide Dance Directories, both ranging in date from 1967 to 2005. The Membership Directories contain lists of WDC members and their contact information. The Statewide Dance Directories are directories compiled by the WDC in cooperation with the Department of Continuing Education in the Arts. The statewide directories list dance teachers, dance programs, and dance studios throughout the state. They also often contain rosters of WDC officers with information similar to that contained in the Membership Directories, despite the fact that the statewide directories were separate publications.
The PUBLICATIONS series contains two categories: Newsletters and Dance Dimensions. The Newsletters contain issues of the newsletter produced by the organization spanning two significant date ranges. The first set of newsletters begins in 1967 and contains only select examples of the newsletters produced during each year until 1971. The collection does not contain a full run of the newsletter during this time period. The later set of newsletters is noticeably more complete, containing all issues of the newsletter from the spring of 1992 to the spring of 2005. The Dance Dimensions category contains multiple copies of the Dance Dimensions magazine published by the WDC. There is not a full run of issues. Most notably lacking are the first three issues of the magazine from 1974.
The WORKSHOP AND CONFERENCE MATERIALS series begins with the contents of a scrapbook that was compiled with newspaper clippings, press releases, and photographs from various WDC workshops from 1966 to 1973. The remainder of the series is composed of folders arranged chronologically beginning in 1966 and continuing until 2005. Materials found in this series (although not necessarily for every year or workshop) include: brochures, press releases, schedules, fliers, programs, and occasional news clippings. Notable in this series is a single grant application for a series of workshops in 1970, the only such evidence of the grant application process present in the collection.
The AWARDS MATERIALS series is also arranged chronologically, and it begins in 1984 (the first year the WDC gave an award) and continues through 2005. There is a folder for each year except 1990 (although an award recipient was chosen for that year, the ceremony held in 1991 recognized recipients for both years). Materials found in this series (although not necessarily for every year) include: programs from awards receptions, short bios of award recipients, banquet agendas, and invitations. Notable in this series is a copy of a report given by the WDC Awards Committee about the 1995 Awards ceremony, one of the few pieces of information about the operations of specific committees within the WDC. A single video recording of the 1998 WDC Awards Reception is also included, documenting the presentation of awards as well as several performances done in honor of award recipients.
The SURVEYS series contains copies of the surveys conducted by the WDC concerning dance education in Wisconsin. The series is in chronological order, but surveys were not conducted every year. The dates range from 1968 to 1995, and there are a total of seven surveys represented. Also included in this series is a folder containing the “WDC Criteria for Dance Certification” from 1972. These criteria were a direct result of the information compiled in the 1968 survey of dance education. In addition to the surveys themselves, material to be found in this series includes copies of the questionnaires used in the surveys and cover letters used to introduce the questionnaires to potential survey participants.
The EDUCATION COMMITTEE MATERIALS series consists of two folders. The first folder in the series is labeled “Promotional Materials,” and it contains several fliers and brochures explaining the mission of the WDC Education Committee. The second folder is titled “K-12 Dance Curriculum” and includes brochures and curriculum guides for general workshops proposed by the WDC Education Committee geared toward students from kindergarten through grade twelve.
The COLLABORATION MATERIALS series includes two folders that document the WDC's interaction with other organizations in Wisconsin. The first, labeled “1981, Wisconsin Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance,” contains two copies of the “Rationale for adding dance as a division,” a document explaining the important role of dance in any physical education program, submitted to WAHPER by the Wisconsin Dance Council. The second folder is labeled “1994, Milwaukee Modern Dance Council/Madison Dance Council” and contains documents related to the exchange of funds from the Milwaukee Modern Dance Council and the Madison Dance Council to the Wisconsin Dance Council. Both of these organizations contributed to the WDC Scholarship Fund.
The FUNDRAISING series contains a single folder with material related to the WDC “Style Shows,” fashion show benefits that the WDC organized to raise funds. This is the only fundraising activity documented by the collection.
The PHOTOGRAPHS series is composed of two sub-categories: Workshop Photographs and Awards Photographs. The folder titles and arrangements of these two groups mirror the arrangement of the larger WORKSHOP AND CONFERENCE MATERIALS and AWARDS series. The photographs in Workshop Photographs show participants from various WDC workshops and display the unique characteristics of these workshops, showing costumes worn and teaching styles employed. The photographs in Awards Photographs show awards recipients as well as performers at awards receptions.
