My First

The School of Theatre and Dance Theatre Majors/ Minors meeting had record capacity today. In all my eight years here, I cannot remember a time when there were more students packed in Wright-Curtis for the fall season “kick-off.” Alright, so half of them were grad students…the more the merrier! Add a powerpoint presentation and a Blog plug and it became a multimedia event! Well, a high bar has indeed been set.

OK- here’s a piece of information that I wanted to get out to the masses but I was not sure how. Since old EvB has never (no honestly) never blogged, I dip my toes into the lake of media with this trifle.

Recruitment and retention are big buzzwords used around many universities these days, KSU included. As a lover of Facebook, I want all Theatre and Dance students to know that I have started my own retention strategy. I, EvB, will not be Facebook friends with a student until s/he has become a sophomore or at least been here for a year. Harsh you might say. Darn right, theatre is a tough business, but I’m not willing to accept (or ignore) your little green plants, join your causes, or see which famous 18th century painter you most resemble until you have made a commitment to stay here in the School of Theatre and Dance.

So sorry all you incoming fresh-people. But keep those grades up and ask me again next fall. I promise not to ignore your
request. We will be friends for life.

--Eric van Baars (Associate Professor)