Hi. My name is Megan Rees. I decided this year to teach an after school ballroom class, and have been very excited about the response! Having danced ballroom ever since I myself was in Junior High, I felt it was something I wanted to pass on to the students I teach.

I started dancing in 1992, at the beginning of my 9th grade year. I didn't want to--both my sisters were very good and had won many awards. I didn't want to compete with that. But at last my mother talked me into it. It's a decision I never regretted. Within months I went from awkward to confident, as I gained close friends, learned how to talk to boys, and felt as if I belonged to something. Back then, ballroom was not very well known. Most people thought I was strange for doing it. It was very hard to get boys to do it. I was on a team, called Dance Dimension, which was taught by ballroom professionals Paul and Michelle Wilding. We competed at BYU, UVSC, and Ricks College in formation and in individuals. I stayed with that team until my Junior year, when the team was disbanded.

I continued to dance, though. When I went up to Utah State as a freshman, I immediately tried out for the team there, and made it. I wasn't the best on the team, but I had a lot more training than most. At Utah State I competed in formation as well, and learned to perfect the dances I had learned. It made the transition to college very easy, because within the first week I had a huge group of friends!

After two years at Utah State I took some time off for charity, and was gone for three years. When I returned to college in 2001, I felt that my formation days were over. I did not do team again, but I did become the teacher's aide for a friend of mine who taught the classes up there. This allowed me to remember what I had forgotten after my long hiatus.

Now here at Elk Ridge, it has been a long time since ballroom was a part of my life. I began to miss it, and after performing in the faculty talent show last year in a swing, I realized that there is a lot of interest in ballroom. I thought perhaps I would start a class here. I cannot teach during school hours without a dance endorsement, so that left after school.

How thrilled I have been to see the response to the class! After three days I had 64 kids signed up, and more coming all the time to add their names to the waiting list. The number is currently 68. And the amazing thing is, every week, just about every kid is there. I have been blown away by the dedication of these students, and their excitement to dance. No more is it something strange, and getting guys to do it is no problem! This is a wonderful experience, and I am so happy to be able to share it with the students I enjoy!

Mrs. Rees