dance off!

Esquina Tango brings Latin America to Austin

Bamako Airlines
"La Juerga" Flamenco Dancer
Gustavo Simplis and Monica Caivano dance the tango.
The Tango class watches a demonstration.
Tango dancers from Esquina Tango
Esquina Tango located on 209 Pedernales Street in Austin.

The little house-turned-community-center on the East side of town was starting to get packed. People of numerous nationalities stood around, chatting in various languages and drinking their BYOB. A hush began to fall as the members of Bamako Airlines took the stage. Soon, the place was filled with the band's unique AfroPop sound and dancers filled the floor.

I was at Esquina Tango on a Friday night with friends, and it was a rocking good time. If you haven't heard of the Latin American cultural society, you might want to. Esquina Tango is a non-profit organization founded by Gustavo Simplis and Monica Caivano, two Argentine transplants. The society aims to build a vibrant and diverse community in East Austin and beyond through performing arts and health.

With an emphasis on Argentine and other Latin American traditions, Esquina Tango is striving to foster personal wellness while promoting an appreciation for Latino cultures.

It's housed in a cute little house that was the Church of the Friendly Ghost once upon a time. Inside its cozy and charming rooms, Esquina Tango offers Austinites Spanish and Portuguese language classes, dance including Flamenco, Tango, Samba, Milonga, Salsa and Brazilian Street Dance, and several fitness classes such as yoga and salsa aerobics.

There are also a lot of fun community events, like the evening of music and dancing with Bamako Airlines. World movies, art, photography, workshops and live music are always on the calendar. "We absolutely love playing at Esquina Tango," say the members of Bamako Airlines. "Aside from the cool vibe of the place, Monica and Gustavo are awesome hosts."

Language classes are offered at several levels; the beginning Spanish class is led by Irma Conti, a warm and funny lady who uses games and songs to help learn the language. The classes I went to usually consisted of two to five students in a very casual setting. Conti also leads a Women's Exercise and Health class.

Simplis teaches the advanced Spanish course. He grew up in Buenos Aires and is passionate about the language and culture. He is also one of Esquina's main tango instructors. Tango has always been part of his life; especially the music. As an adult, he stumbled upon the dance and fell in love with its rhythms and intensities. His dance style expresses passionate feelings and connection and a sense of humor with his partner, the audience and the music.

The society also offers youth dance classes for children ages 4-10 years old. Different sessions include a variety of social dancing such as Cumbia, Mexican Folk, Salsa, Polka, Brazilian rhythms and Argentine Tango & Folk. This is a multicultural program where students will discover the joy of movement & creativity while learning about the cultures from where the dances originate.

If you would like to have an easy way to preview and sample the dance classes at Esquina Tango, there is no better time than the Fourth Annual Free Day of Dance on January 21st. All classes are completely complimentary, and no partner is required. Esquina Tango will be starting at 10:30 a.m. with Salsa Aerobics, continuing throughout the day and ending with a 7:15 p.m. beginning Salsa class. You can check their full schedule here.

Membership at Esquina Tango runs from $15 to $50 and gives benefits such as class discounts, priority access to workshops and events, ability to attend members' meetings and other benefits. You don't have to be a member, however, to take any classes or attend events. Financial assistance is available, and the organization offers a volunteer or work/trade program for people who would like to be involved in a more affordable way.

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Esquina Tango, 209 Pedernales Street, 512-524-2772,www.esquinatangoaustin.com,

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Study This

Austin is the No. 7 most educated city in the country, says Forbes

Photo by Dan Dennis on Unsplash

UT Austin gets a lot of praise, but this study includes degrees from everywhere — as long as the recipient lives in Texas.

Austin and San Antonio don't get all the same opportunities as the even larger cities in Texas, but in a recent study they prove they're prepared. Both made the top 10 in Forbes Advisor's "Most Educated Cities In The U.S." list: San Antonio was No. 4, and Austin was No. 7.

Other Texas cities made the list of 100, but some fell surprisingly far behind. Dallas made No. 20, followed by Houston at No. 79 and Fort Worth at No. 93. In some even more surprising twists, the smaller city of Garland was the fourth in Texas at No. 26, and El Paso, Corpus Christi, and Laredo all beat Houston.

This study compared the 100 largest cities in the country as of the 2021 census, using metrics like high school dropout rate, percentage of adults age 25 and older with some college, but no degree, undergraduate college completion rate, and percentage of adults age 25 and older with an advanced degree. There were also some lower-weighted metrics about equity, studying racial and gender college completion gaps.

Although many education studies fall into praising the University of Texas, this one considers education as a whole — while still mentioning the university once.

In San Antonio, the bachelor’s completion rate for people 25 and up was 67.30 percent, and 29.56 percent of people in that age group have advanced degrees. The study doesn't have much to say about educational opportunities in the city, focusing instead of its tourist potential. But it did note that the city had one of the smallest racial gaps for higher ed, which was only -5.49 percent. Its gender gap was 0.97 percent, and its high school dropout rate was 4.53 percent.

San Antonio's Trinity University did great in a Niche study that came out in early September. It was the No. 18 best small college in America, and topped the list entirely in Texas. Among bigger fish, it was also the No. 20 best liberal arts college in the country (and again the best in Texas), and made No. 4 in general for best colleges in Texas.

In Austin, 59.89 of people 25 or older completed Bachelor's degrees, and 22.76 percent completed advanced degrees. The racial gap was much worse at -10.87 percent. Its gender gap was a bit less than San Antonio's, at 0.69 percent, and its high school dropout rate was more at 7.56 percent.

Of course, this is where the study mentions UT, which is based in Austin. It made WalletHub's 2024 ranking of the best colleges and universities in Texas and earned the No. 2 spot; clinched the No. 6 spot in Niche's ranking of the best public universities in the country; and earned No. 2 in a list of best undergraduate programs for entrepreneurs by the Princeton Review, among other accolades.

Just breaking into the top 20, Dallas' Bachelor's degree completion rate was 57.05 percent, with 21.37 percent attaining advanced degrees. The racial and gender gaps were −14.99 percent and 1.64 percent, respectively. Much further down the list, Houston's Bachelor's degree completion rate was only 32.99 percent, and only 10.97% achieved advanced degrees. High school dropouts were at 8.90 percent, and the racial and gender gaps were −4.99 and 2.10 percent respectively.

Here are all the Texas cities on the list of 100, in order from most to least educated:

4. San Antonio
7. Austin
20. Dallas
26. Garland
49. El Paso
59. Corpus Christi
76. Laredo
79. Houston
81. Arlington
83. Irving

More information on the study by Forbes advisor, including full city rankings and expanded methodology, is available at forbes.com.

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