Today we’d like to introduce you to Sandi Phillips.
Hi Sandi, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I was born and raised in Dallas Texas. As a little girl, all I wanted to do was dance! I took at Natalie’s School of Dance. Natalie founded the Dallas Civic Ballet and Dallas Dance Council. I later took at Texie Waterman’s school of dance. Texie was the first choreographer of the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders. As a child growing up life brought challenges as life does… dance was a way for me to find joy. Dancing from the age of 3 through high school drill team I wasn’t sure what was next? High school graduation was close approaching and with a nudge from my grandmother at the age of 18 I decided to audition for the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders. Gratefully I made the team while still in high school! I had the time of my life cheering for the Cowboys. My second year on the team I made the Show Group, an elite group within the DCC that got to perform for our military overseas. I was able to share my love for dance and the joy that dance brought to our troops. After I retired as a DCC I married my husband Drue. We have 3 Wonderful kids. We moved 30 minutes South of Dallas in Waxahachie TX. We fell in love with the charming town and decide to make it home. I made some great friends that encouraged me to open a dance studio in Waxahachie to share my passion and love for dance with our community. My dreams have come true that I get to share the same joy that I found in dance as a child with children today. Sandi’s School of Dance opened 6 months before the pandemic hit. We started the studio in an old ballroom that we renovated on the 2nd floor of the historic Rogers Hotel in downtown Waxahachie. Thankfully with an incredible team, we have made challenging times great times for children to have socialization, express themselves through art, and have great community through dance. This past Summer we renovated a building about a mile and a half from downtown Waxahachie. We went from 3,000 sq ft to 12,000 sq ft. Our beautiful new dance home has a large foyer that makes our studio comfortable for our dance family. Community and dance are my families passion and it’s with great Honor that we get to live that out.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
Owning a business is not for the faint of heart… It is a lot of hard work and determination. As I mentioned earlier, we opened the studio 6 months before the pandemic hit and we went into lockdown. How are we supposed to have dance classes when we can’t leave our homes? We quickly pivoted to virtual dance classes. The joy in the kids’ faces when they could see and talk to their dance friends over zoom. We would have special events where kids would log on and I would read them a book about dance. Anything to keep the children engaged, dancing, and interacting with their friends. The support our studio received from dancers not dropping out is something I will never forget. Our teachers were amazing to keep our dancers dancing.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
We provide classes for dancers starting at 2 years old up to adult classes with a wide variety of genres. We seek the importance of teaching the fundamentals of dance in a fun environment from professional instructors with extensive training.
For Dancers ages, 2 through 12 will be provided with Twinkle Star curriculum to ensure progressive learning in a fun environment. We are an Acrobatic Arts certified studio and CLI partner. We put on 2 shows a year! A Holiday Show and a Spring Recital that in hopes to make great memories for families. We are in our second year of having a competition team at our studio.
We have a beautiful new studio with 4 large studio rooms and a large lobby that is available for parties and a great place for our dance family to enjoy.
What matters most to you? Why?
Caring for people through dance and sharing the joy that dance can bring children and families.
Pricing:
- 1 class a week is $65 a month
- 1 week Summer Dance Camp $149
Contact Info:
- Email: sandi@sandisschoolofdance.com
- Website: sandisschoolofdance.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sandis.schoolofdance/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sandisschoolofdance
