Junior Cotillion, with a three year curriculum, is designed to give young people instruction and practice in the courtesies that make life more pleasant for them and those around them; to give them thorough training in standard ballroom dance; and to provide opportunities to practice and enjoy these skills at memorable parties, balls, dinners and events, complete with decorations, refreshments, favors and prizes.
   

Junior Cotillion places as much emphasis on etiquette, manners and character education as it does on dancing. The social and character education components of the program include rules of proper telephone courtesy, acknowledgments of gifts, introductions, receiving lines, participating in group settings, polite conversation, paying and receiving compliments, sports etiquette, first impressions, dress code for all occasions, manners in the home and in public places, table manners, formal place settings, styles of dining including American, Asian, and Continental, skills involved in being a guest, hostess or host, and many other areas of social behavior. Other topics covered are the ethics involved in the areas of having honor, dignity, respect, honesty, fairness, a caring attitude, accountability, and citizenship.
   
 

The Junior Cotillion setting encourages young ladies and gentlemen to be comfortable together, make new friends and enjoy themselves. After constant practice in a peer group, young ladies and gentlemen are expected to leave the program with the confidence and poise that comes from knowing the proper etiquette in any social situation. Instruction in dancing and etiquette is given throughout all sessions.
 

NLJC's Dance Program consists of traditional dances such as the Foxtrot, Cha Cha, Shag / Swing, and Waltz; as well as current, popular line dances. Music consists of current top forty hits that have been carefully screened for lyrics and content.
   
 

"When we were in Cotillion, we never thought we would really be using some of the things we learned there. We are now away at boarding school and moving into our senior year. It isn't until you live away from home and are exposed to how other kids behave in different situations that you get a real appreciation for the importance of manners and etiquette.

 

For example, when we are in the dinning hall there is a big difference in how people eat. A lot of kids have no clue how to behave at a formal dinner and are embarrassed by the ones that do have good table manners. It has a big impact on how others view you and treat you. I even had one of the kids in my dorm ask me about table manners because he was being kidded about being a slob.

 

We also have formal dances and other social activities that require an understanding of appropriate behavior in a lot of different situations. Again there is a big difference in how comfortable and confident the kids are who have been taught how to act in formal situations and those that haven't. It also makes a big difference in how others respond to them.

 

The bottom line is that your classes have made a huge difference in how comfortable and confident we are in social situations now that we are living away from home. Knowing how to act is a big differentiator that makes a big difference in the friends we attract and the respect you get. I hop the others who have taken your class are benefiting from the training as much as we are."