Tom Welsh selected for Distinguished Alumni Arts Educator Award

The School of Dance is pleased to announce that alum Tom Welsh has been selected for the Distinguished Alumni Arts Educator Award for his significant contributions in arts education.

Welsh will be given the award at the CFA Assembly, which will take place on Wednesday, September 23 from 10:45am to 12:15pm in Kingsbury Hall. The assembly will also celebrate the creative works and research of College of Fine Arts students and faculty.

Tom Welsh teaching dancer to use the Pilates reformer

“The School of Dance is delighted to recognize Tom's incredible research and teaching contributions to the landscape of dance education,” said School of Dance Director Melonie B. Murray. “His work has significantly influenced the development of dance science as a distinct area of study, and his various contributions to the discipline have influenced the ways in which present-day dance programs in higher education consider and support dancer health and wellness.”

Tom Welsh is currently on the Dance faculty at Florida State University where he teaches Conditioning, Kinesiology, Science of Dance Training, Reformer Training, Coaching, and Research Methods for dancers. He also teaches classes and workshops for summer dance intensives at FSU and other major dance training centers, including at the School of Dance’s own Utah Ballet Summer Intensive (UBSI).

“Tom’s main focus in his research, teaching, and service has been in the area of Dance Science and supporting healthy dance training,” said Professor Pamela Geber-Handman, who co-founded the Dance Science and Somatics Educators (DSSE) with Welsh. “Tom is incredibly humble in terms of his own accomplishments, and yet he has regularly published and presented.”

Tom Welsh teaching

To name a few of those accomplishments, Welsh wrote Conditioning for Dancers (2009) to introduce dancers to the movement sciences and he led the creation of a 23-author Research Methods in the Dance Sciences (2023) text to encourage research by dancers with dancers. He is a member of the editorial board for the Journal of Dance Medicine & Science (JDMS), he was founding chair of the IADMS Research Committee (International Association for Dance Medicine & Science), and he served as IADMS Board member, Vice President, President, and Immediate Past President. Welsh also led the creation of a Movement Training Lab (MTL) for dancers. Its hardware includes state-of-the-art Pilates, Gyrotonic, and fitness training equipment, and its "software" involves empirically validated training protocols, intensively trained staff, and self-directing dancers.

“While these are hugely notable accomplishments in and of themselves,” said Geber-Handman, “Tom ALWAYS brings students to these conferences and workshops, promoting their own research, teaching and helping them launch their careers post-graduation. I have always seen Tom put his students first. His own research and teaching has been in service to the betterment of his students.”

Congratulations, Tom Welsh, and thank you for representing the School of Dance!