Dance Instructors

Ashley has been dancing for the past ten plus years. She has experience in ballet and tap. She was involved with the Community Nutcracker and other local performances. After high school, she continued her love of dancing in teaching with Little Dancing Stars. When Ashley is not teaching our little stars, she enjoys being with her sorority sisters, volunteering, spending time with family along with pursing a health science degree at the University of West Florida.

Danae started her dance training at ten years old and hasn’t stopped since! She has studied a variety of dance styles including pointe, hip hop, lyrical, jazz, tap and acrobatics. Danae has taught at the Wehner’s Dance Studio from ages 3 to adults and is currently teaching at a local dance studio at night! When Danae is not dancing, she loves spending time with family, friends and traveling. Danae is so happy to be sharing her passion with our little dancing stars!

Haley has been dancing since 2000 and was a competition dancer for 12 years. She has been working with young children for many years, and started her teaching career by dancing in many daycare locations around Jacksonville. Haley joined the Academy of Dance faculty this year but has been teaching for 5 years and has come to love teaching the art of dance to our newer generations. Haley graduated from Jacksonville University in 2020, majoring in Dance and Psychology. While attending Jacksonville University she trained under Paul Taylor company members and also trained with the Brian Nicholson. Haley hopes that she has been able to teach children of all ages how to love the art of dance and encourage determination and passion that will last a life time. When Haley is not teaching dance, she loves to spend time with her husband, her family and has a new Little Dancing Star that arrived in October 2024!

Haylee has been dancing for 24 years. Her favorite type of dance is clogging and tap; teaching clogging at a local dance studio in the evenings. Haylee is also managing for Little Dancing Stars in the Fleming Island and Orange Park areas. She loves children and was employeed with the Duval County Public Schools in the afterschool program for several years. Her passion is teaching children her love of dance. When Haylee is not dancing, she loves spending time with her husband and son, volunteering, teaching at a local studio and restoring furniture as a side business.

Kyla found her passion for dance at the age of 10. She trained under Debra Bricker at the Academy of Dance Arts for 8 years. During those years, Kyla had the opportunity to dance as Aurora in Sleeping Beauty, attend national competitions, and train for YAGP. She attended a performing arts high school before attending Wofford College and being part of their dance program. Kyla’s love for dance has allowed her to teach in several dance schools in the southeast and offer classes as an extracurricular activity to local schools. Kyla loves working with young dancers because of their ability to be creative and imaginative in all circumstances. When she is not teaching dance, she loves to spend time with her family and reading!

Patrice has been taking ballet, tap, and jazz since she was in third grade. She began teaching to preschool and early elementary levels in 2006. Patrice served on the board for the Monroe-Jackson Dance Theatre and performed in their productions of Sleeping Beauty and Peter Pan. She is a member of Dance Masters and a former member of CNADM. When she is not dancing, she is spending time with her family and volunteering at her church.

Vanessa has been dancing for 40 years! She has danced at the Mary Skiba School of Dance and the Ann Parsley School of Dance along with teaching at Switzerland Dance School, Artists in Motion, and St Augustine Dance Academy. Her dance training started at a very young age and included classical ballet, tap, pointe, and jazz. Later, she began to train in modern/lyrical. A Showchoir Camps of America alumni. Over the past 3 decades, Vanessa has taught and choreographed…ballet, tap, jazz, lyrical, dance teams, private classes, solo/duet, adult ballet and tap, competitive dance, and mommy and me classes. When she’s not dancing Vanessa loves to travel, cook, and spend time with her family and cats!

Melissa began dancing at age four in south Florida at the Riverdale Dance Academy until her family relocated to north Florida in 1980 where she continued dancing at the Bean School of Dance. She received her training in Ballet, Tap, Jazz and Gymnastics. Melissa was the lead choreographer for “Your Stars on Stage” for Dancing Little Stars dance company in Virginia. Melissa then went on to begin her own dance company in the greater Jacksonville area in 2001. Melissa has co-written a new curriculum for teaching tap and ballet for the preschool age. Her curriculum’s method is “learning the art of dance through fun, while also teaching both dance techniques and its terminology”. When Melissa is not working with Little Dancing Stars… she is volunteering at her church, being a wife and a mother to twins, Ashley and Kaitlyn!