Dancers Rising

Empowering youth to succeed through dance and higher education

Christina was an 8th grader when we first met her, a young, shy but determined Latina student raised by a single mom in Minneapolis.  She, her mom and her younger brother lived in poverty.  She had no dance training.  Her mom couldn't afford to send her to any dance lessons because finances were always tight. But Christina always dreamed of learning how to dance.

No one in her family had gone to college.  Her mom works 2 jobs cleaning houses to support Christina and her brother.  But Christina had good grades and also dreamed of going to college to get a good education and become a nurse so that she could make a better life to support her family.

In the summer before 9th grade, Christina made her high school dance team.  She was so excited to make friends and finally learn how to dance and perform.  But she was also scared that she wouldn't be good enough because she had no dance training.  She knew she had to work hard to get up to the level of the other dance team members.

She applied to Dancers Rising and received a scholarship to go to dance camp and a dance studio that summer with her new teammates.  After going to camp, she told us, "That was the best time of my life!  I learned so many new routines and have been practicing them every day!"  Her mom told us that her confidence grew with that extra training.  In her freshman year, she made her school's JV competition team.  She received an additional summer scholarship from Dancers Rising after her first year.  In her sophomore year, she made her school's Varsity team.

In that first year, we've grown close to both Christina and her mom, and have started talking to them about colleges and how to get into a good nursing program.  In the next few years, we'll help them with planning college visits and coming up with a financial plan to pay for college.  We'll also help Christina with ACT prep and college and scholarship applications.  They are excited to see their possibilities and what might happen to change their lives in the future.  We are determined to help Christina find and graduate from her "best fit" college so that she can reach her dreams of being a nurse.

Christina's story isn't done yet.  There are many other students like Christina who we want to help achieve their dreams.  Some want to become professional dancers.  Some want to go on to different careers.  In each case, we will help them to achieve their goals through dance scholarships for increasing levels of dance training and independent educational consulting and college counseling services to go to a college that will help them pursue those careers.

Your donation will help Christina and other students pursue their love of dance and their goals of going to college or a professional dance program. 

Your donation will change lives!  Partner with us to empower our next generation of leaders to "Achieve, Inspire and Dance."