Emma Monje

My name is Emma Monje, and I am a freshman at Centennial High School. I have been dancing with Dance West since I was three years old, and I started competing with them as a mini when I was five years old. This is my ninth year competing with them. I do most styles of dance including; ballet, jazz, tap, hip hop, lyrical, contemporary, and musical theater. Along with that, I teach a beginner ballet class with one of my teammates. My mom put me into dance because when I was little I was always dancing around the house. My parents would always put music videos on the TV and I would try and follow along and dance like the dancers in the music videos. One day my mom asked me, "Emma, do you want me to put you in dance classes?" and with the biggest smile I said, "Yes!". That's how it all began. My parents found the closest dance studio to our house, which was Dance West, and enrolled me in a baby ballet and tap class. Ever since I have been in love with the art and sport of dance. I am a part of Dance Fusion because I love dance and I wanted to have the opportunity to dance more. Now I get to dance in and out of school. I also am a part of Dance Fusion because it allowed me to make new friends with the other girls on the team, and we all have the common interest; dance. I could not be happier or more thankful to be a part of such a positive, supportive, and hard working team!

I have set many personal, academic, and dance goals this year that I plan on reaching with hard work and dedication. My personal goals for this year are to become more patient and understanding of others. I think this will help me become not only a better teammate, but a better person. This year, academically, I would like to maintain and achieve a 4.0 GPA. Last, but certainty not least, my goals for dance are to become more carefree in my improvisation. I would also like to work on my flexibility in my hips and legs. Along with all these goals, I want to always make sure I am portraying the best version of myself and treating everyone with kindness.

Besides dance, something I enjoy doing is writing. In the future I would love to go to college and major in Journalism, and minor in Dance. Right now I am only a freshman, so I am not 100% sure where I want to go to college, but I would prefer to stay on the West Coast, decently close to home. In the future, I want dance to always be a part of my life. I hope to be on the dance team to whatever college I choose and I want to continue teaching dance to younger kids. I also wish to travel a lot. Above all I just want to continue growing not only as a student and dancer, but as a person. I hope you learned more about me. Thank you!