Dear Dance Families,
I hope you are well and enjoying your summer holiday. Fiona and I want to take this opportunity to introduce ourselves, share relevant news, and welcome our incoming dance families.
I’ve been teaching in the Dance Department for 9 years. Time really does fly when I consider that this year will be my 10th year at the school teaching dance composition. I’ve been through several shifts and changes in administration in my time here and am aware of how challenging this can be for our students and families. I feel honored that Principal Lawler has asked me to step into this role as interim co-chair with my colleague Fiona Lummis Eddy (I’ll let her introduce herself below). I graduated with a BFA from SUNY Purchase and was a founding member of Shen Wei DanceArts, NYC. After moving back to Los Angeles I went on to work professionally with BodyTraffic, Your Huge Head, and String Theory. Being a parent myself, I have a 15-year-old son and a soon-to-be 11-year-old daughter; I understand how much heart and work goes into raising these young people academically and artistically. I am here to partner with you in your child’s education. Please reach out to me via email at kershner_alexa@lacoe.edu
To our incoming dance families, I want to extend a huge welcome to you all. In a few weeks, your LACHSA journey will embark! As a LACHSA alum myself, I can tell you that this is a dynamic school, rich with history and also very forward-thinking. With most transitions, there can be real apprehensions and worries that arise for both students and families. Be reassured that we are here to partner with you and to make this a great experience for your young dancer. There will be ways for families to get involved and more communication about what that looks like over the coming weeks.
In gratitude to you our Dance Families, to my colleagues, and to the greater dance community,
Alexa Kershner
I second the welcome to the new families in our LACHSA dance community and a hello to all returning families- I am sincerely looking forward to getting to know everyone this year afresh and in-person (hooray!).
At John's Lawler's request, I am happy to be stepping into this interim co-chair position with Alexa to help keep continuity and stability within our dance program, whilst a search for the full-time position is conducted in the spring of 2022. I come to this position with 40 years of experience in the dance world, 20 as a professional dancer at Netherlands Dance Theater, and 20 on the other side of the curtain as a dance educator and stager of choreographers Kylian and Van Manen's works. I started teaching at LACHSA in 2009. During my time here, I have worked for 3 different dance chairs and 4 principals. I understand the need for stability during times of transition. My love for the LACHSA dance dept. knows no bounds - especially because of the many talented students and supportive parents that I have had the pleasure of working with. I am, more importantly, a mother to 2 sons, One of them a HS junior (not at LACHSA) and one of them a LACHSA alum (VA 2018). Like Alexa, I share many of your concerns about parenting and guiding young humans in this complicated, ever-shifting world. I am here to help you and your student as best I can on your journey forward through and beyond High School.
Alexa and I, with the help of Hai Cohen and all the dance faculty, will always try to answer your concerns in a timely manner - I can be reached at eddy_fiona@lacoe.edu
Fiona Lummis
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