Something Special

I can’t believe we are preparing for year four at Soar! It has gone by so fast! Soar has thrived for three reasons:

1. God overseeing every detail!

2. This staff amazes me!

3. The families at Soar are truly great!

 I want to focus on point 2 – our staff. For the fall, there are a total of 15 staff members that make Soar so special! I would like to tell you a little about each of them. It includes both professional information and fun quirks about each of them.

Music Staff

·      Mr. Taylor Mack has been on staff for two and a half years. His laid back, encouraging attitude makes him able to work with both children and adults very easily. Mr. Taylor graduated from the New Orleans’ Seminary last spring. In between classes, you will find him singing in the lobby or talking about Star Wars!

·      Mr. Cole Sullivan has a year left before he finishes his music degree from the New Orleans’ Seminary.  Mr. Cole is very diverse as he can teach piano, guitar, banjo, and voice lessons. You are sure to notice his tattoos and calm manner!

·      Mr. Caleb Dykes taught last semester at Soar. He has the ability to bring instruction to a basic level or to challenge advance students. Mr. Caleb does a lot of traveling between attending the New Orleans’ Seminary and leading worship in Kentwood. He is also recently married.

·      Miss Jessee Yantis is currently our only female music teacher. She is also one of our art teachers. She is one of those crazy gifted people that is awesome in multiple things. Miss Jessee is known for her different hair colors and love for the Lord.

Art Staff

·      Read Miss Jessee’s information above.

·      Miss Marley Besse will be teaching Creativity, Art Introduction, and Drawing classes. Marley’s own art creations will blow you away. She loves all things Disney and connects with our students in a very easy manner.

Dance/Tumbling Staff

·      Miss Maddie Mizell started with Soar at it’s beginning. She is our awesome tumbling teacher. Miss Maddie takes the position seriously and tends to be one of our firmer teachers. She knows in tumbling that if the student and instructor are not on the same page that injury can occur. Once you get know her, you will find someone who puts her best into everything she does.

·      Mrs. Amanda Lightfoot is a former LSU Golden Girl and former Honeybee for the NBA Hornets. She has the stamina and technique to push our competition dancers. She spends her free time with her husband and two young sons.

·      Miss Lauren Simpson works with our Preschool and Beginner students. She has the energy to keep up with those little darlings. Miss Lauren also works as a paraprofessional in the school system. You can often “hear” Miss Lauren teaching before you see her.

·      Miss Kaitlin Thomas was a former Soar student who spent years assisting classes before becoming a teacher herself. Miss Kaitlin assists tumbling and hip hop. She lead teaches competition progression classes and elite recreational classes. Miss Kaitlin’s personality is pretty serious, but before long she is joking with the students. Miss Kaitlin strives to get the best out of her students.

·      Miss Lindsey Hooge is a former competition dancer and collegiate dancer. Miss Lindsey’s strongest genre is ballet, but she is diverse and can also teach hip hop, jazz, and tap. Miss Lindsey’s cardio warm-ups get our students’ endurance up quickly. Her goofy personality makes her a joy to be around.

Owners and Administrative Staff

·      Mrs. Ashley McGlothren – that would be me! You will find me everywhere at Soar – checking in on classes, helping at the front desk, chatting with parents, or teaching my own dance classes. I’ve trained at multiple dance schools, was captain of my high school and college dance teams, and went on to teach and choreograph at other studios before Soar. I still choreograph most of our competition dances and teach the adult dance classes. I have no spare time between homeschooling my two children and Soar. LOL!

·      Mr. Thomas McGlothren’s title is COO (Chief Operations Officer) at Soar. He is responsible for the everyday operations of Soar and the logistical parts of our events – sound tech, building props, and making sure the facility is kept up. He is the glue that makes this place keep going. You can also find him playing music at area churches with the Riverside Revival Band.

·      Mrs. Cheryl McGlothren has always been part of our administrative staff. She currently works our lobby position where she watches student get to their parents and helps students who arrive late get to their classes. She helps with communication to our families and with measuring for costumes. She is the heart of our studio.

·      Miss Shannon Payne is our office manager. When you call Soar, this is normally who you speak to. She handles our accounts and correspondence with our families. We love her willingness to learn and how she truly enjoys her position at Soar.

·      Mr. Brent McGlothren handles keeping Soar clean. He also helps out at our registration and events in any way needed. If he picks on you, it means he likes you. We appreciate his willingness to help.

On top of all this, we have student assistants that team up to help too. I’ve recently started saying, “it doesn’t take a tribe, it takes an army!” I’m so thankful for Soar’s army!