- Freddie Brock
How Do We Know…You Told Us!
Well our first year was sensational! I’m talking about our DREAM Ballroom Dance Program. This program was a collaborative effort of Fordney Foundation and Erica Arnold, professional dancer and instructor. Of course, we had two wonderful schools to help make our journey successful and we were pleased to be part of this fulfilling experience!
We literally got a hundred letters from students and teachers of both Colfax Charter Elementary School and Woodlake Elementary Community Charter School, 4th and 5th Graders, who participated in this dance experience, telling us how you felt about our first year’s DREAM Program. Here are some of the things we learned from the students:
Grateful
Happy
Enjoyed the experience
Fun and educational at the same time
Gave us self confidence
Felt more mature
We got to express ourselves
Erica was great
We learned so many dances we would have never learned
Amazing opportunity
Erica was kind, calm and thoughtful
Forgot about being nervous
Taught us how to be ourselves
Great teacher
Felt proud
Loved engaging in art
Inspiring
Loved the music
Loved performing for our parents
Appreciated the showcase
Fordney Foundation – thank you for your generosity
Here are some of the students’ favorite dances that they learned:
Night Club Two Step
Fox Trot
Rumba
Cha Cha
Swing
Salsa
As you can see from the comments, we are utterly excited and filled with joy that our new project DREAM has taken off with this kind of momentum. Colfax Charter and Woodlake Elementary Schools have paved the way for us and we are proud and thankful that these schools have taken to our program. We promise to be even better next year! Are you ready, we will be back in September!
We want to mention that Erica Arnold is hugely responsible for DREAM’s success. The Fordney Foundation feels privileged that Erica, with her immense prowess and talent, truly enjoys sharing her skills with students. We also want to give a special shout out to one of our own special, award winning dancers, Loren Silverman, who was so helpful in assisting Erica with the students and the dances. You were awesome!
As the program grows, we hope, in the future, we may be able to bring dance to other schools and introduce ballroom dance into their curriculum. Until then, continue to DREAM…and keep reaching for the stars, you know we will!!!
Thought Of The Week:
How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world – Anne Frank
