Cori Terry

Artistic Director and founder

Cori Terry, Wellspring's founder and Artistic Director, was born in Brooklyn and attended the State University of New York at Stony Brook before moving to New York City to complete her dance training. In 1974, she joined the Erick Hawkins Dance Company, performing and teaching throughout the US and Europe. She moved to Kalamazoo as Artist-in-Residence at Western Michigan University in 1980 and founded Wellspring in 1981. In 1987, she received Kalamazoo's coveted Community Medal of Arts. She completed a BA in dance from WMU in 1989 and has taught master classes there as well as throughout Michigan and the Midwest. In 2006, Ms. Terry was honored by Kalamazoo College as recipient in the first-ever Women In Town Awards, recognizing the achievements of local artists. Ms. Terry was awarded the 2008 Community Dance Advocacy Award from WMU's Partners in Dance for her outstanding contributions to the Greater Kalamazoo community, advancing the art of modern dance. She was a finalist for the 2008 Governor's Lifetime Achievement Award. To date, she has choreographed more than 70 major works for Wellspring. Ms. Terry is a certified advanced Rolfer®, in practice since 1996.