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Talented Teachers

The staff at Raedene’s uses a very positive approach, while building the dancers' self esteem. They are personable instructors who have extensive backgrounds in dance education and teaching. Our teacher’s collective backgrounds include: college Dance degrees, high school coaching experience, NDA instructors, National Head Instructors, Judges for National dance competitions and professional experience with the Royal Winnipeg Ballet Company, and Detroit Auto Shows. All of the teachers at RDSS are required to continue their Dance Education. Many of our teachers are pursuing Certification with Dance Masters of America, National Teachers Training programs through Music Works Unlimited and the Broadway Dance Center in New York City.

Ms. Raedene Schriner
Studio Director

Ms. Raedene began dancing at the age of 4 with Kathleen Tenniswood, and later with Mary Ellen Cooper and Mary Lou Barnes. In college, her focus was ballet, kinesiology, and the education of teaching dance. She was a Phi Theta Kappa student who graduated with honors and always had the passion of teaching and working with young children.

Ms. Raedene started teaching dance while she was attending Chippewa Valley High School where she was Captain of the Chippette Dance Team.

Training dancers for over 24 years, Ms. Raedene continues to attend national business seminars and dance conventions to further her education in dance and business. She loves to teach young children and is proud to watch them grow into beautiful dancers and role models for the upcoming stars! Seeing the Dancin' Stars develop into talented young ladies and gentleman with such positive spirits has been a true joy for her!

Staff

Ms. Chrissy Fortuna
Studio Manager, Choreographer

Ms. Chrissy was a teacher at RDSS for 11 years. She taught numerous classes and companies and was the coach/choreographer for the award winning Jr. Starlettes, Starlettes and Elite All-Star teams. Ms. Chrissy worked for the National Dance Alliance (NDA) for 11 years and was a Head Instructor, judge and choreographer. She was also the East Coast State Director for four years. Ms. Chrissy has choreographed/performed for Chevy, Make-A-Wish Foundation, MGM Grand Detroit Casino, International Performing Arts Academy, Leige Entertainment, Macomb Junior Players, Affiliated Group and many other award-winning dance teams, studios, and individuals from coast to coast. Ms. Chrissy just returned from Los Angeles, where she worked with Production/Talent agencies and freelanced as a choreographer and convention speaker. Ms. Chrissy has a background in broadcast arts and is the Owner/Artistic Director of Reaction Dance Force, founded in 2009.

Ms. Melissa Kubiak
All Star Director, Newstars, Recreation

Ms. Melissa has been a student and competitive dancer at RDSS since day one. She was a member of the award winning Jr. & Sr. Starlette and Elite Dance Teams and served as captain of both Sr. Starlettes and Elite. Ms. Melissa was nominated to and made the NDA All American team. This gave her the opportunity to perform at events such as the Hula Bowl and Orange Bowl. Ms. Melissa was also a five year veteran staff member of the National Dance Alliance where she was an instructor at dance camps throughout the country. She has also judged several local competitions for NDA. Ms. Melissa has also trained through Pulse Dance conventions and taken classes under the likes of Mia Michaels, Wade Robson, and Chris Judd. She graduated with her bachelor’s degree from Oakland University in Elementary Education and is now teaching at a local school. Ms. Melissa coached the 2009 National Champion Elite All Stars and is very excited to begin another year at RDSS!

Ms. Ashley Carlton
Ballet Explosion, Pointe

Ms. Ashley comes from Minneapolis where she studied ballet at the Minnesota Dance Theatre, Ballet Arts Minnesota, Point Park College in Pittsburgh, and the Milwaukee Ballet School. In addition, Ms. Ashley’s professional experience includes dancing with the Spring Board Company of Minnesota and the Professional Division of the Royal Winnipeg Ballet. She has been an independent master instructor for the Hopkins Dance Center, The Dance Shoppe, and Northland School of Dance. A superior understanding of technique combined with a love for the art of ballet are qualities that have helped Ashley to become the instructor that she is today. Ashley’s ability to share this knowledge and passion with her students establishes a learning environment that is truly worthy of a “Bravo”. Ms. Ashley developed the 5 Levels of Ballet program that is used at RDSS.

Ms. Danielle Steiner
Hip Hop Explosion, Recreation

Ms.Danielle was a student and competitive dancer at RDSS for 12 years. She was a member of the award winning Jr. Starlette, Sr. Starlette and Elite All-Star dance teams for many years. During Ms.Danielle’s dance career at RDSS she studied many different styles of dance and also competed with the explosion companies. Ms.Danielle was a part of the 2006-2007 NDA All American Dance Team. She has danced at various special events including dancing for Rascal Flatts and Taylor Swift on their “Bob That Head Tour” in 2008 and danced in Walt Disney Worlds “World Showcase”. Ms.Danielle has been working with the hip-hop company explosion teams along with many of the RDSS recreational classes. Currently she is studying at Wayne State University in their education program. Ms.Danielle brings her passion for hip-hop, jazz and pom to RDSS and is very excited to be part of our teaching staff.

  Ms. Megan Agrusa
Jazz/Lyrical Explosion, Recreation

 Ms. Megan has been dancing since the age of two and competing nationally since the age of four. She trained at Deborah’s Stage Door Center for the Performing Arts, Suzette’s Masters of Dance and RDSS. She won the NDA "Top All-American" Award and Miss Motor City in 2004. Ms. Megan danced professionally with The Detroit Pistons Dance Team Automotion for four years where she served as co-captain for one year, captain for two years and head of choreography for three. Other special events where she has performed include: Sesame Street's Bob McGrath at Meadowbrook Theatre, Special Olympics, News Channels 4 and 7, CBS Morning News Show for the Woodward Dream Cruise, Greek Week dance competition at Michigan State University, Cheerleader in an MTV segment with Drew Barrymore and Jimmy Fallon, MTV dance segment with Trick Daddy, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno as a part of the Super Bowl segment filmed in Detroit, backup dancer for Wierd Al Yankovic. In the past year Ms. Megan has been an extra in Transformers 3, a featured extra “Pretty Girl” in Real Steel with Hugh Jackman, a Rockette in Harold and Kumar 3, a dancer in Miley Cyrus's music video, Who Owns My Heart and appeared in several local commercials. Aside from working at RDSS Ms. Megan travels the country with the Auto Show as a spokesmodel for Fiat. Ms. Megan looks forward to watching and helping Raedene's Dancin' Stars grow as individual and team dancers while sharing her “Just Do It” motto!

                                       Ms. Pam Burke
Company Technique, Newstars, Recreation

Ms. Pam has over 26 years of training and teaching experience in ballet, tap, jazz, lyrical, pointe, acrobatics/gymnastics and modern/contemporary.  She earned a Bachelors from Oakland University in Communications and was a participant of their dance team “Images”.  She has completed master classes and trained at Steps on Broadway, BuffaloUniversity, offered a full dance scholarship at Marygrove College, Alma College Summer Intensive Program, Chicago National Association Dance Masters, Dance Educators of America, Broadway Dance Center, NYU, Allard Academy of Dance and senior company member at Tina Marie’s School of Dance.  Ms. Pam has choreographed as a guest teacher and has won regional/national award as a performer and instructor.  She is a current and active member of Dance Masters of Michigan and Dance Masters of America where she will be certified by the end of the summer.

Ms. Kimberly Jones
Company Technique & Fitness, Recreation

Ms. Kimberly holds a B.A. in Dance/Performance, and has studied, taught, and performed intensely in Boston, NYC, Detroit and Los Angeles.  Her Modern/Jazz choreography can be found in numerous independent films, stage works, and has been recognized with premier dance troupes on the east coast.   Ms. Kimberly is also an ACE certified Group Fitness Instructor with extensive studies in kinesiology, exercise science, and movement analysis.  She has studied and taught pilates, yoga, and various fitness and dance modalities both nationally and internationally.  Most recently, she founded the Ballet Boot Camp method and class format, and is excited to launch this program at RDSS.

Ms. Maria Buchholtz
Recreation

Ms. Maria is a graduate of Wayne State University. As an Explosion Coach at RDSS, her teams have won numerous high gold and platinum ratings as well as special awards and overall placement. Her unique ballet routines won the Cathy Roe Innovative Choreography Award twice! Her lyrical routines received the Starpower Choreography Award in both 2008 and 2009. She has made appearances for Gail & Rice and On Track Model Management. Some events include Campbell’s Soup, American Football League and the Make a Wish Foundation.
                                     Ms. Maria truly enjoys teaching and watching dancers grow to love dance.

Ms. Jenny Kasprzyk
Explosion Company Director, Hip Hop Explosion

Ms. Jenny K. graduated from Central Michigan University with a degree in nutrition and works full time as a Program Manager & Registered Dietitian for the Michigan Bariatric Institute. She has studied dance since the age of 6 and competed for more than 10 years. Ms. Jenny K. coached the Dakota High School JV Dance Team from 2000-2005 and had the opportunity to take master classes with Allison Faulk from the Beat Freaks Dance Crew.  In addition, her professional experience includes dancing with Platinum Productions, the Detroit International Auto Show, and not to mention the   fabulous staff at RDSS! She has been teaching at RDSS since 2004 and has been working with the hip-hop company students and pom explosion as well as many of the recreational classes. She has judged regional competitions throughout the nation and choreographed routines for dance teams & cheer squads in the Macomb County area. Ms. Jenny K.'s philosophy is to allow your movement to reflect your personality.

Ms. Nikki Fell
Tap Explosion, Newstars, Recreation

Ms. Nikki is a graduate of Oakland University with a degree in Communications. She is trained in all styles of dance and has been teaching students of all ages for over seven years. Ms. Nikki has passed her grade I-IV ballet exams with the Cecchetti Council of America. She has performed with the Metropolitan Ballet in The Nutcracker, at the "Jazz on Tap Festival" in Atlanta, competed in numerous competitions as well and danced in the musical, "Me and My Gal". Ms. Nikki has trained under choreographers such as Dustin Phillips, Doug Caldwell, Tom Alexander and many more. Ms. Nikki has professional teaching experience as a teaching assistant for Dance Olympus Dance Conventions. Also, she has had the opportunity to tour the United States while working as a judge for Elite Dance Cup. Looking forward to another great year of teaching, Ms. Nikki is excited to share her love of dance through her classes and choreography. 

 Ms. Sara Porzondek
Recreation

Ms. Sara is a graduate of Oakland University and a former dance studio owner. She was a four year member and captain of the OU Dance Team, winning 2nd place at the UDA National Championship. Ms. Sara has danced professionally with the Detroit Pistons Dance Team, Automotion, for two seasons, as well as for the Detroit Ignition Dance Team, The Spark, for one season. She is a former coach of the Rochester Adams Dance Team and the current coach of the Oakland University Dance Team. Ms. Sara is excited to share her passion for dance and teaching at RDSS!

  
Ms. Kara Burnham
Jazz/Lyrical Explosion, Newstars, All Stars, Recreation

Ms. Kara has been a student and competitive dancer at RDSS since 1996. She was a member of the award winning Jr. & Sr. Starlette and Elite dance teams. She was also a part of the 2009 NDA National Championship Team. Throughout the years, Ms. Kara competed on many explosion teams in all styles of dance at RDSS. She was a member of the NDA All-American Team, the 2008 NDA “Top-Gun Hip-Hop” winner, and was awarded "Excellence in Leadership" from NDA in 2009. Ms. Kara was a scholarship student at RDSS for two years. This past year her soloist and trios won first overall at many regional competitions. She is attending Oakland University where she is studying Elementary Education. Ms. Kara believes that every dancer dances from the heart and is excited to bring her love for dance to her students

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Ms. Angela Conn
Company Technique, Explosion, Recreation

Ms. Angela began her dance training at the age 2 and immediately fell in love with it. As she continued her training she became a member of the Plymouth Canton Ballet Company, Encore Dance Academy's Performance and Competitive Dance Company all at the age 8. While competing, Ms. Angela received numerous awards such as  Starsystems Senior Miss Superstar of MI, Teen Miss Dance U.S.A of MI, Junior Miss Michigans talent and fitness winner, and Dance Masters of Michigan high score ballet winner. Along with many other awards, Ms. Angela received scholarships that gave her the opportunity to travel and train with some of the most sought after choreographers such as Mia Michaels and Mandy Moore. Ms. Angela has been a member of the Detroit Pistons Dance Team, Erie Pennsylvania's "The Chillers" dance team for the AIFA, The Mercyhurst dancers program, and Mercyhurst Dance Team. She is very excited to be a part of Raedene's Dancin' Stars staff, and looks foward to sharing her passion of dance.