Tell us about interdisciplinary connections. What does dance bring to your academic and civic life?
in the studio and, below, taking home hardware at a dance competition. Photos provided by Erin Lewis.
This question gets at the heart of why I’m so passionate about dance as a vehicle for change. Dancing is therapeutic for me, so connecting its healing powers with the people who need it the most is simply what I should be doing as a member of this community. … When I first moved back home in 2015, there was no ballroom studio in town. There still isn’t, although we’re working to change that! … Dance lessons are cost prohibitive for many families, and that’s always bothered me. With a career in civics, I’m trained and biased toward acting when I see a need that needs to be met. This one just happens to align with a personal passion.
Can anyone dance?
Absolutely! I get asked this a lot. Ballroom dancing is unique due to the partnering aspect. Even a true novice — on day one, lesson one — learns, showcases, and competes with their teacher. You’re not alone in dance. You’re with your teacher, supported by other students.
How did you meet Jonah Schneider, your competitive dance partner since May 2005?
I remember it like it was yesterday! I grew up wanting to learn how to ballroom dance because as a kid, I’d watched the annual PBS America’s Ballroom Challenge on TV. But there was no studio in Newburgh or Evansville, so I just kind of wrote it off. Then when I moved to Indianapolis to run the civics programs, I realized they probably had a ballroom studio. I walked into the first studio I found. Jonah and his partner at the time, Lindsey Rutherford, were rising stars. I was terrified, but from the second I shook his hand, I knew it was going to be fine. One tango lesson, and I was hooked.
How can adults who’ve not danced since their childhood bring dance into their adult lives?
I was that adult! Get in touch with Jonah and show up at SWIRCA for your lesson. He will take care of you from there, and it will change your life. If you’re over age 55, join the Silver Aces! They perform (watch for them at the Aces games this year), but that part is optional. Anyone can join for the lessons.
What is a good beginner’s dance step?
Foxtrot, hustle, and rumba are wonderful, easy dances to get started with, and useful if you’re out somewhere with a DJ!
How many dance shoes do you own?
I did a quick scan, and it looks like 24! However, I wore a good portion of those before I had my daughter, so I have about six in rotation now: a couple dance sneakers and some blinged out rhythm and ballroom shoes.
Where do you find your energy?
I’ve always had this deep well of energy. I like to apply energy to improving the community; that’s because I had a good civics teacher. And I would have made a career in the Corps if I hadn’t blown out my knee in a Taekwondo injury. That sense of truncated military service — that’s been driving me for 20-plus years. But life is funny like that; an injury pivot, and I spend a career finding a different outlet for all that drive.
ONE MORE THING
Before moving back to Evansville in 2015, Erin Lewis worked two years as outreach director for the late U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor’s iCivics program. The duo became close while traveling the country together, and lessons learned from O’Connor impact Lewis today. “I learned what true work ethic looks like,” Lewis says. “She was a legendary straight shooter, bridge builder, a great cook, and very, very funny.” She even credits O’Connor for encouraging her relationship with Lewis’ now-husband, Mitch. Torn between living closer to Mitch and hitting the road for O’Connor, the justice’s advice surprised her: “She got very serious, grabbed my hand, and said, ‘No question. You move there and see what happens. You’ll regret it forever if you don’t. Family always comes first,’” Lewis recalls. “It flipped my whole thinking.”
Later, O’Connor pushed Lewis to apply for a job at UE’s Center for Innovation & Change. “Justice O’Connor said, ‘You absolutely should do that. Go do that, and then make every other college do that, too,’” Lewis says. Always one to go the extra mile, O’Connor wrote Lewis a letter of recommendation.
