Age: 15     From: Canada     ADTC Alumni? Yes

Dogs or Cats? Cats

Hip Hop or Ballet? Ballet

On time or late? On time

Loud or Quiet? Quiet

Running or Walking? Walking

Save Money or Spend Money? Save Money

Bus Driver or Bus Rider? Bus Rider

Problem Solver or Problem Maker? Problem Solver

Extrovert or Introvert? Introvert

Call or Text? Call

Insta or Snap? Insta

City or Country? City

Stay Home or Go Out? Stay Home

Hawaii or Alaska? Hawaii

Book or Movie? Book

What words do you live by? “The way I see it, if you want the rainbow, you gotta put up with the rain” (Dolly Parton)

What or who makes you laugh the most? My best friend makes me laugh the most.

How would your friends describe you? My friends would describe me as someone who is quiet, but very funny/loud when you get to know me.

What is your favorite dance style? My favorite dance style is lyrical.

What hobbies do you have outside of dance? Outside of dance, I’m a synchronized swimmer, and I love to read and bake.

Other than necessities, what one thing could you not go a day without? I could not go a day without a book. I’m always reading.

If you could only eat one meal for the rest of your life, what would it be? It would be scallops and rice because it’s of my favorite meals that my dad cooks.

If you could live anywhere, where would it be? I would live in Japan. I’ve grown up loving Japanese food because of my mom. I think it would be amazing to experience Japanese culture and get to eat great food.

What is your biggest fear? My biggest fear is being buried alive because I watched a Fear Factor episode about it, and it still haunts me.

What is your favorite Holiday? My favorite Holiday is Thanksgiving because I love cooking and spending time with my family. Plus, it’s during fall, which means it’s chilly outside, but not freezing quite yet.

What is your biggest pet peeve? My biggest pet peeve is unnecessary noises like whistling or clicking. I like to be quiet most of the time, which is why these types of noises bother me so much.

Is there a fun fact about you that people might find surprising? My Hogwarts House is Slytherin even though everyone assumes I’m a Hufflepuff.

What is your True Color Personality Style? I am green. I agree with the description of what my color says about me. I’m always told that I over analyze everything, so it makes sense that I received “Analyzer”. I’m a very organized person, who likes to be on time. Plus, I’m a rule follower. Whether that be at school, or playing cards, I like to stick to the rules. This quality can drive people crazy at times, especially my family, since they enjoy playing without the instructions. I definitely agree that I need challenge in my life. I take harder classes, so that I can push myself. I also agree that I need truth or honesty in my daily life. I’ve struggled in the past with untrustworthy friends, so it’s very important to me that people are always honest. In that regard, I do sometimes display a lack of control when it comes to honesty. I have very strong opinions, and I do not lie a lot. If you ask me if you think an outfit looks good or not, I’ll give you my opinion without any sugar coating. I’ve always believed that it’s better to hear it from me, a friend, then a stranger. I also agree that I’m frustrated by illogical decisions, as I value logic and struggle to understand something without a mathematical formula. The only description given that I would disagree with is that I watch nature/science TV shows. I prefer to watch shows that don’t require you to think at all, mostly shows from the comedy or romance genre (although I also like dystopian worlds) to get a break from reality for a little bit,

Who is your idol? My idol is Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, She is my idol for a few reasons, starting with the fact that she was the youngest person ever elected to Congress. She started from something small and ended up in a place that was big – from being a bartender to being in Congress – which I believe is a huge example for girls in the world. I also like that she speaks for the smallest person in the room. She wants to help those who cannot help themselves. I want to be able to do what she does where you help and support those who need it the most.

Why do you love to dance? I love dance because of the counts and the technicality. I am a more precise than fluid in my dancing, at least until I learn the dance. I really like that there are moves and counts and the process of trying to follow them gives my mind a break.

What is your proudest accomplishment & why? My proudest accomplishment is passing the Diplôme Nationale du Brevet, which is the French national exam for entering high school. This is a test that is taken at the end of grade 9 by all French students (in France and it confirms whether you get to be on track for college some day). There were a huge number of people telling me that I couldn’t pass it – some because I was taking it too early (I passed it a year early) and some because I was an American with English speaking parents. I worked really hard and studied for hours and hours, and I didn’t just passed but did so with honors, scoring better than most graduating 9th graders in France. In the words of Frank Sinatra, the best revenge is massive success!

What goals are you working on right now (in both dance & life)? For dance, my goal is to begin dancing again and try to get myself back to the level that I was before in terms of body flexibility and overall skill/technique. In life, my current goal is to get through my senior year with high grades in my most difficult classes. Overall to improve my grades from last year and get my PEI Diploma (International Baccalaureate).

Tell us about a difficult situation in your life and how you got through it. What did you learn? Last summer I move to Quebec, Canada from Dallas, Texas which was a huge change. I already knew French as I had attended an international school in Dallas but coming to Quebec I was thrown into an environment where people speak French in every day
life outside the classroom which was new to me. I struggled to adapt to the new accents and the new words (Quebec French is not the same as France French). I also struggled with making new friends as I am very introverted – on personality tests I always end up at the far introverted end of the extrovert vs. introvert spectrum. From this experience, I learned that you don’t have to put yourself out there for everything but there are moments where you have to just speak up. This is how I made my first friend and from there, she helped me meet a group of other friends. This in turn helped me learn the school and the city that I now call my home.

What is the most daring thing you’ve ever done? Please refer to the above questions, did you see that I am an extreme introvert? I don’t do daring things! But in all seriousness, the most daring thing I’ve ever done was a ropes course at the Mall of America. I originally agreed to do it with a plan to simply be near my little brother because the course required an “adult” and my mother was too scared. Not until after I got up there did they tell me I would have to zip line across the amusement park of the mall. And once you are harnessed in, they don’t let you turn around so there was really no way to go back. I’m not sure if this was daring so much as it was just a not fully informed decision but it made my brother really happy. I learned that sometimes you have to do things that scare you for the people you love.

If you’ve been to ADTC, what is your favorite dance camp memory & why? I attended ADTC in Baltimore in 2017. My favorite memory was probably the girls night weekend because it was a smaller group and I was able to become closer with the people who had attended with me. I was less shy than I usually am during this time and I had a lot of fun.

What is your A.D.T.C. Superpower? My ADTC Superpower is being a Creator. I am good at solving problems and thinking outside the box when it comes to projects. I don’t let other people get in the way of me accomplishing what I set out to do. On another note, I am currently going through a transition and am finding myself attracted to being a Dreamer. I aspire to be someone who, in the future, will change the world for the better, and am working on developing to confidence in myself to believe I can do it.

What do you want other girls to learn from reading your #ADTCidol bio & story? I would like them to learn that obstacles can happen, change can happen, and that this is ok because we all have our obstacles. Sometimes you have take a break from things to overcome those challenges and that’s ok too. I would like girls to understand that sometimes stepping back is how you can see how much you really love something. In my case this was dance but it can apply to anything.