Faculty
Lea Willis - Director
Lea is the co-owner and Artistic Director of DanceMania. She has studied at Univeristy of North Carolina School of the Arts, received a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Jacksonville University, and a Master of Fine Arts in dance from FSU. She has performed in several outdoor dramas including "Unto These Hills" and "The Lost Colony", and has been an instructor at several area schools. With over 30 years of teaching experience, Lea is also the founder and director of "On The Move" Dance Company and creator of our After School Program as well as River City Science Academy's Dance Club.
Shawn Schaefer
Shawn received a Bachelor of Fine Arts from North Carolina School of the Arts, where she was featured in several productions. She has danced with several renowned dance companies including Larry Richardson Modern Dance Company (NYC), and Bella Lewitsky Modern Dance Company (LA). She has a very impressive resume of performance history and scholarship awards. After teaching and dancing in New York for many years, she moved back to Jacksonville and has taught at DanceMania for many years. Shawn remains an active participant in the local dance community.
Kristen Scandurra
Kristen grew up dancing at DanceMania and was a member of the "On The Move" Dance Company for 10 years. She is a graduate of FSCJ, where she was actively involved in their dance department, and of University of Florida with a B.A. in Education. She works with local dance company Three Hearts Dance as a dancer, choreographer, and production manager, and is a guest artist at LaVilla School of the Arts. She currently teaches Ballet, Lyrical, Jazz/Hip Hop, choreographs for the 'On The Move' Company, and works at the front desk.
Betty Willis
Betty is the owner of DanceMania; A retired licensed nutritionist, she loves to share her skills with the children attending the After School Program. Her extensive education includes a Master of Business Administration, and Master of Public Health (Nutrition). You can walk in to hear the kids chanting "Ms. Betty is the best!"
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Carmel VanHeusen
With a background in early childhood development and experience teaching children of various ages, Carmel is one of the founders of DanceMania and one of the teachers for our After School Program. We are lucky to have her working with us.
Jasmine Williams
Jasmine was a student at DanceMania for several years before going on to become a certified childhood development associate. Jasmine has been working and volunteering with children of various ages for most of her life. Jasmine is so excited to join our team to teach line dancing and tap.