When you think of transcending borders, you think about bridging gaps between races, ages, religions or geographical lines. Really, though, those “borders” can be anything, including the different disciplines at a local college. And transcending them could combine knowledge and experience to foster great things.

Holy Cross is a cut above the rest in this regard, spearheading the idea of taking the arts and marrying them to other academic disciplines, creating a force to be reckoned with, where students and the greater community can be enlightened by a wider perspective. It is the new chapter in education.

Earlier this year, with the funding support of an Andrew W. Mellon Foundation grant, Holy Cross launched the Arts Transcending Borders (ATB) initiative, which has met with huge success. Through a series of artist residences, master classes, performances, lectures and exhibits, the ATB program strives to take the liberal arts experience and have it reach even deeper.

Along with the ATB program, the development of a new course called CreateLab has given artists the opportunity to fully integrate into the curriculum. The idea challenges the traditional academic environment by having professors and students collaborate. Instead of an “I teach and you learn” methodology, the faculty and the students work collectively on an ongoing basis and feed off of each other’s ideas to come up with meaningful solutions.

ATB is organized around annual themes. The theme for 2014 was “Time, Memory and Identity” and featured artists-in-residence Galithian bagpiper Cristina Pato and percussionist Shane Shanahan, both members of the renowned Silk Road ensemble. Pato taught along with the faculty, giving talks and workshops in music, Spanish, education and even pre-business and entrepreneurial studies.

“There has been more conversation and enthusiasm about the arts and arts events than in my 30 years at Holy Cross. All of the Arts faculty are jazzed,” said Lynn Kremer, theater professor and director of the ATB program.

This year, the theme is “Gravity and Grace: The Intersection of Art and Science.” The artist-in-residence this fall will be the Troika Ranch company, founded by Dawn Stoppillio and Mark Coniglio. Troika Ranch, which creates contemporary and hybrid artwork fusing movement and technology, will develop a piece based on swarm theory and emergent systems in conjunction with CreateLab.

Special sessions and performances in 2015 include Elizabeth Johnson, a gifted choreographer and dancer who will lead a session on leadership during the Aptissimi Leadership Conference on Jan. 19. Aptissimi invites students to explore and develop their leadership styles.

“Elizabeth is very experienced in leadership workshops with diverse groups, ranging from board members and high-level administrators to teens, and we eagerly anticipate her session exploring qualities of leadership, as well as followership, and the importance of both through movement,” Kremer said.

On Feb. 4, there will be an event at the El Camino pilgrimage in the St. Mary Chapel, and on Feb. 10, Cuban-American playwright Melinda Lopez will work in classes during the day and give a public talk that evening. On Feb. 22, ATB will feature dancers from Aceh, Sumatra, with a panel discussion and performance held in Brooks Concert Hall.

The grant given to Holy Cross will also help to fund a new performing arts center, and planning is underway.

For more information on the program and performances, visit academics.holycross.edu/atb.

By Jennifer Russo