Chair of DanceBlue Says Event is ‘So Inspiring’

By Ryan Clark and Ella Rosner
CHS Contributors

“From my experience in DanceBlue, I am hoping to take away many leadership skills as well as lifelong friendships. I also want to take away the forever mission of advocating and supporting the battle against pediatric cancer. This organization has instilled some of the greatest qualities that I will use as a future clinician.”

That’s how Hannah Talley describes the importance of DanceBlue.

Talley, a senior Human Health Sciences major (Pre-Physician Assistant Studies) from Cape Girardeau, Mo., is the Overall Chair of DanceBlue, which will again take place on March 29-30.

She’s also involved with the Chi Omega Fraternity, the Order of Omega, the Pre-PA Club, Global Brigades, and she’s served as a student ambassador.

But it’s DanceBlue, now right around the corner, that has recently been front of mind.

As a student-run philanthropy at the University of Kentucky, DanceBlue raises funds and awareness for the fight against pediatric cancer while supporting patients and families affected by it. Funds raised by DanceBlue support the DanceBlue Hematology/Oncology Clinic at Kentucky Children’s Hospital.

And it has inspired Talley in several ways.

A student leader in her own right, we caught up to Talley to find out how — and why — she got involved in so many events, and why CHS and ultimately PA stood out to her.

Here’s 5 questions with … Hannah Talley:

1. Why did you choose Kentucky and major in HHS?

I always knew that I wanted to go out of my home state of Missouri for college, but also wanted to stay in the Southeastern Conference because of the sports atmosphere. I have an uncle who is from Owensboro, and he suggested that I tour the University of Kentucky. When I was a junior in high school, my parents and I traveled to Lexington to visit UK, and I immediately fell in love with the campus. I also knew at that point that I would be going into the healthcare field, and I loved that this campus had many teaching hospitals nearby.

When I first came to campus as a freshman, I was a Biochemistry major on the Pre-Physician Assistant track. From the beginning of this degree, I knew that only getting the math and science information was not going to help me be the best provider when it came to teamwork and empathy. Early into my first semester, I discovered the Human Health Sciences program. When doing research on it, I enjoyed that not only were the prerequisite science courses in the degree, but there were degree classes that went through empathy, social determinants of health, and other topics to teach future healthcare professionals how to be the best holistic providers.

2. How did you get involved with DanceBlue, what does it mean to you, and do you have a best memory?

I got involved with DanceBlue through older girls in (my sorority) Chi Omega, who encouraged me to fundraise and dance freshman year. Throughout the year, I worked hard to fundraise even though I still did not fully understand what DanceBlue was or did. For the DanceBlue 2022 marathon, I danced for Chi Omega and ended up being one of the Top 40 Fundraisers for the year. During the last four hours of the marathon, the mission of DanceBlue was explained and I saw the outstanding work that each committee member participated in. I knew from that moment on that I wanted to get more involved with DanceBlue, so I decided to apply for the Morale Committee.

For DanceBlue 2023, I had the honor of serving on Morale, which is where myself and a partner led a group of dancers throughout the entirety of the 24-hour marathon, organized them every hour, and were there for them during the hardest hours. After my year on Morale, I was inspired and knew that I wanted to get even more involved with DanceBlue. Throughout the year, DanceBlue hosts mini versions of the dance marathon around the state of Kentucky, to fundraise money while also spreading the mission to elementary school, middle school, high school, and college students. When I was on Morale, I attended over 20 of these mini marathons, so going into my junior year, I decided to apply to be a Mini Marathons Coordinator. In this role, I had the opportunity to lead 13 schools in their versions of a mini marathon, while spreading the mission of DanceBlue to thousands of students. For DanceBlue 2024, Mini Marathons raised over $500,000, and getting to lead this inspired me to apply for DanceBlue. This organization is something so extremely special, and seeing thousands of college students unite under one mission — to fight against pediatric cancer — is something so inspiring and is the reason why I keep doing what I do. This inspired me to apply for the DanceBlue Overall Chair.

As DanceBlue Overall Chair, I lead a committee of 10 chairs, 41 coordinators, and 130 committee members. Along with that, I serve as an ex-officio member of the Golden Matrix Fund Advisory Council — which is the alumni organization for DanceBlue. I meet weekly with members of UK Philanthropy and my advisors in Student Organizations and Activities. Along with that, I work with UK Legal to discuss terms and percentages for the 20th Anniversary Endowment Fund. I serve on the Kentucky Children’s Hospital Council as well as work closely with the Alumni Association for all newsletters. I am the main liaison for all DanceBlue external partners — including the Kentucky Pediatric Cancer Research Trust Fund, Kentucky Government Officials, UK Athletics, and other external partnerships that arise.

My favorite memory from DanceBlue is getting to see one of the kiddos I played with a lot in the clinic ring the bell after fighting so hard against this terrible disease (to celebrate significant milestones in their treatment, cancer patients ring a bell). They never wavered in their fight, and always shined a light on the work that DanceBlue was doing in their life. Seeing a kid who I worked with so closely was so inspiring, and I will remember her ringing the bell forever.

3. How have your mentors helped you?

All of my professors in the College of Health Sciences have helped me in the academic and professional setting. Every professor has been willing to discuss future plans and give advice for the betterment of me as a future clinician. Along with that, all of the previous Overall Chairs as well as my advisors in DanceBlue have helped me along the way in this position, and helped me to carve a legacy that will be passed down to the next generation of DanceBlue.

4. What does the future look like for you?

My post-graduate plans are to work at the UK HealthCare Markey Cancer Center as an OB/Gyn Medical Assistant while applying to Physician Assistant School. Once I go to graduate school, I plan to become a Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Physician Assistant to hopefully treat the kids who have inspired me so much during my time in DanceBlue.

5. Any advice you want to give to anyone thinking of going down a similar path?

To future undergraduate students I would say to not be afraid to get involved or pursue what you are passionate about. You will get more fulfillment out of everything you do, if it’s something that you are passionate about. College is a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and you should do everything you can in these four-plus years that will prepare you to not only be better in your career, but also be a better person going forward.