Opinion: Dancing into a new era at NGU
Caroline Gaffney, Taylor Osbourne, Savannah Hovis, Adam Kelly, Harley Watkins and Clay Webb celebrate NGU’s first dance.
Adam Kelly, Staff Writer
North Greenville University held its first organized dance on Thursday, August 24, after the Ignite session with Pastor Clayton King. Suspense built for the news, when the school announced the change at a meeting the night before classes. Everyone screamed and hugged when the news was announced, but my friends and I already knew of the announcement prior to the meeting and were much less surprised.
I attended a private, Christian school prior to North Greenville, so my initial thoughts were that the university’s first dance would be a lot like the ones held at my high school. Envision this: teenagers in a cafeteria, huddled in groups on their phones, not dancing because the DJ that so happened to be an alumnus of the school is playing music you absolutely cannot dance to.
I went to these kinds of dances for my entire middle and high school career, so this is what I expected, but on a slightly larger scale. North Greenville’s first dance was held on the basketball courts beside the dining hall. Lights were strung along the basketball goals and glow stick necklaces were handed out to students attending the dance.
I huddled together with my friends, and we talked for the first half of the dance. There were a few other groups talking like us, but there was also a group of people dancing to every song throughout the night.
Towards the last half of the dance, the faculty started to play line dances I knew, and I enjoyed dancing to them with all of my friends. Although it was humid, the atmosphere was welcoming and enjoyable. I didn’t dance the entire night, but when I did, I had a good time. I think having close friends with you makes anything a lot more fun.
Overall, North Greenville’s first dance was a lot better than I expected. Although I stood around half of the time talking with friends, I enjoyed myself and my friends did as well. The faculty didn’t repeat songs and I was able to dance to a majority of them, a definite plus. It definitely wasn’t like a party held by a fraternity, but it well-represented North Greenville University as a school. There will be future dances held at the school, including formals, and I am looking forward to them.
