Student Organization Spotlight: Around the Globe

Student Organization Spotlight: Around the Globe Around the Globe is a student organization offering dance classes and workshops for W&L students to learn new dances from around the world.

By Kelsey Goodwin
April 13, 2026

Around the Globe is bringing the world to Washington and Lee University's campus one dance at a time.

With an annual Spring Festival, year-round workshops and collaborations with a wide range of campus organizations, the student organization has carved out a distinctive and welcoming space on campus for anyone interested in learning new dances from cultures around the world. Now in its fifth year, Around the Globe brings together students and the broader Lexington, Virginia, community to celebrate multicultural dance and foster cultural exchange.

Joe Lee '26, a senior cognitive and behavioral science major from Arcadia, California, serves as co-president of Around the Globe. He was drawn in during his first year by one of the organization's co-founders; both were involved in W&L's Repertory Dance Company. Lee says his interest in dance started as a love of K-pop dance videos when he was younger and, since his arrival at W&L, has translated into an opportunity to help build a genuinely cross-cultural community in college.

"I got really invested because I love just learning about different dances," Lee recalls. "I went to the meetings and all the workshops and eventually got involved in leadership."

"Connecting with each other through a form of dance is something I hadn't imagined I would be able to contribute to at Washington and Lee," he says. "But finding so many people who appreciate and love dance and want to learn about other cultures has just been such an enlightening experience."

Co-President Sylvia Agatako '26, a computer science major from Kigali, Rawanda, spent her childhood watching her mother and sister perform a traditional Rwandan dance called amaraba in their living room, but always from the sidelines. When she arrived at W&L, she connected with Around the Globe and decided to further explore her dance roots. Agatako says that through the club she found patient instructors, enthusiastic peers and a welcoming community showcasing dances from Colombia, Bulgaria, Ireland and beyond. She joined the group as event coordinator before transitioning to co-president. She says her family back home has noticed the transformation.

"They're like, 'Wow, you really got into exploring your dance skills,'" she says. "They're happy. They're proud."

Around the Globe has roughly 30 to 40 active members, many of who are also involved in groups like the Student Association for Black Unity (SABU), the African Society, Pan-Asian Association for Cultural Exchange (PAACE), the South Asian Student Association (SASA), the Student Association for International Learning (SAIL) and Irie, W&L's Caribbean club. The executive team of 12 students includes event coordinators, performance directors, a technical director overseeing lighting and sound, a treasurer and a marketing and social media team.

Lee and Agatako say the most common misconception about Around the Globe is that you need a dance background to participate.

"You do not even need to know any specific dance," Agatako says. "Just come have fun. Meet people."

"It's so much fun when you're experiencing something new around other people who are also experiencing something new," she says. "You're all acknowledging each other, trying, and you're having fun with it. And most of our workshop leaders are very patient. They meet everyone where they are. It doesn't need to be perfect."

The centerpiece of Around the Globe's calendar is its annual Spring Festival, held each spring on Cannan Green. This year's event on Saturday, March 28, was the organization's fifth festival. Attendees wore their traditional cultural attire, and the food spread, sourced from outside Lexington and supplemented by dishes prepared by club members, included homemade Bengali food. Polynesian dance, hip-hop, Bollywood, Cuarteto from Cordoba, Argentina, and traditional dances from Ethiopia and Rwanda were featured in this year's program. Past festivals have featured Bulgarian traditional dance, Irish step dance, salsa, Afro beats and the Bon Odori dance from Japan.

"We want to create a space where the performance will be the main part of the event, but also where people share their culture and learn about each other's," Lee says, "so people will truly feel like one together."

The organization was co-sponsored this year by the Center for International Education, the Office of Student Engagement and Leadership and the African Society, with PAACE and SASA also also contributing to event coordination and décor. Beyond the Spring Festival, the club's recent offerings have included West Coast swing dance, karaoke night with Irie and a line dance workshop with SABU. Club members also table at the Activities Fair each fall and participate in W&L's "Around the World in Five Days" Leading Edge programming.

Lee and Agatako emphasize that new members are always welcome. For updates and a look at past events, follow the club on Instagram at @aroundtheglobewlu.