Colorado Dance Education Organization
Mission
CoDEO is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting and advocating for dance education in the state of Colorado. CoDEO provides the dance artist and dance educator a state and national network of resources and support, as well as access to programs and projects that focus on the importance of dance in education. The purpose of the Colorado Dance Education Organization shall be to enrich the lives of the people of Colorado by supporting and promoting dance arts and arts performances through education, communication and advocacy.
History
For the past 30 years the Colorado Dance Alliance (CDA) had been the premier service organization for the Colorado dance community. What began as an organization that distributed an informational newsletter, grew into annual dance educator workshops, access to master classes and the development of open stage events. In the past 2-3 years membership to CDA began to wane and in November of 2013 the board made the decision to refocus CDA and make the transition to the Colorado Dance Education Organization, (CoDEO), a state affiliate of the National Dance Education Organization (NDEO). It was the board's desire to maintain the foundation that CDA had previously built and serve the dance community through the lens of education.
Transition to Educational Focus
Dance education in Colorado is on the crest of a new wave. In November and December of 2013 the Dance Endorsement Committee, in collaboration with Colorado Department of Education, (CDE) presented​ a proposal for a K-12 dance endorsement in our state. With the adoption of the Colorado Academic Standards in Dance in 2009, then the development of the CDE Dance Curriculum Project and the Content Collaboratives Assessments in Dance in 2012, there was one last component missing to ensure a strong infrastructure...a service organization focused solely on dance education. It was a natural progression for CDA to transition to CoDEO and thus, this NDEO state affiliate was formed. Some CoDEO board members were integral in developing the 2009 and 2020 K-12 Dance Standards for Colorado Department of Education, as well as fundamental in the unanimous approval of the 2014 Dance Endorsement.