Meet the Teachers

Elite Staff

ASHLEY
Ashley began her training in Portland Oregon, at American Dance Theater, under the direction of Elizabeth Abts, Melissa St. Claire and Kevin Poe and Beaverton Dance Center under the direction of Joseph Wyatt. She was a member of the Jefferson Dancers during high school, and was mentored and taught by Portland choreographer, Mary Hunt.

She graduated with a degree in Dance Education from Brigham Young University in 2003, and was a member of their Contemporary Dance Company which allowed her the opportunity to perform all over the United States and in the LDS Churchs 2002 Olympic Program, Light of the World. During college she was accepted to intern with the National Dance Education Organization in Washington DC, and was invited to perform with Repertory Dance Theaters showcase during the 2002 Olympics in Salt Lake City, UT.
 
After college, she taught dance at Bingham High School, in South Jordan, UT and was the Dance Company Coach. She choreographed for the Dance Company as well as the Bingham High School Musicals from 2003-2005.
 
Ashley enjoys being back in her home town with her husband and 4 kids teaching with the amazing staff here at Elite.

DANIE
Daniela DeLoe is originally from Las Vegas, Nevada. She trained at the Academy of Nevada Ballet Theatre and also participated in summer programs at Pacific Northwest Ballet School, School of American Ballet, and the National Ballet of Canada. As a professional ballet dancer she joined Nevada Ballet Theatre and quickly rose through the ranks from apprentice to soloist. In 2002 Daniela joined Oregon Ballet Theatre where she was promoted to soloist in 2007. During her career she enjoyed dancing many featured roles in George Balanchine’s Nutcracker, Christopher Stowell’s Swan Lake, and Nicolo Fonte’s Left Unsaid, just to name a few. Daniela joined Elite Dance Studio’s staff in 2012 where she loves teaching and choreographing for her students. Outside of the studio Daniela lives in SE Portland with her husband and three kids.

JOE
I began dancing in college at the UofO and trained at Unity School of Dance in Eugene Oregon. I spent the next 11 years training in Eugene and gradually transitioned to teaching. During that time I primarily taught hip-hop, acro and jazz. Eventually, I was working with competition and other performance groups, primarily Kings Krew Dance Company. Currently I have had the opportunity to compete at Hip-Hop International and dance with groups such as Kings Krew Directed by Eileen King, Lyfe Dance Company Directed by Durante Lambert and Rip City Crew affiliated with the Portland Trail Blazer Dancers.

I am thoroughly impress by the work ethic and skill level I’ve already seen with Elite’students, and I’m excited to get to work with them. I know that I will be able to challenge them and myself in class.

JOSIE
Josie started dancing at Elite Dance Studio in 7th grade where her amazing teachers fostered her love for dance. She became a member of the Junior Blazer Dancer her 8th grade year, enhancing her performance skills. She later danced on her high school dance team, Westview Wildthings, on top of dancing competitively with Elite’s Competitive Teams. In later years, she danced professionally on Pure Dance Company.

Outside of the studio, Josie enjoys spending time with her large family including her cat Milton and dog Hank. This is Josie s 7th year teaching at Elite Dance Studio.

KARIN
Karin began dancing at the age of 4. She moved several times and had the opportunity to train and compete in tap, jazz and ballet throughout different studios in California, Colorado, Texas, and Oregon. Karin began teaching dance during high school for a local dance studio and upon graduating high school she accepted a position with the United Spirit Association where she traveled throughout the western united states and taught high school dance camps. In conjunction with attending Western Oregon State University, Karin continued to work her summers for the USA organization. While attending college, Karin danced professionally for the Portland Trailblazers as a Blazer Dancer. After graduating college, Karin went on to teach business and marketing at Southridge High School as well as coach and build the Southridge dance team from the ground up. After having her first daughter, she took a break from teaching high school and began working at Elite Dance Studio. This is Karin s 13th year at Elite and 12th year directing the Elite Dance Studio Performing Company. Karin s passion outside of dance is spending time with her husband and her three amazing daughters. She loves being creative and the inspirational process of working with dancers.

KRISTI
Mrs. Bacon Trad began studying ballet at the age of 3. She trained with the Joffrey Ballet, Boston Ballet and the Houston Ballet Academy. At the age of 17, she was asked to join the Houston Ballet. Under the direction of Ben Stevenson, Kristi enjoyed a fruitful career dancing many Soloist and Principal roles. She also had the opportunity to work with many world renowned choreographers such as Jiri Kylian, Margot Fonteyn, Paul Taylor, and Sir Kenneth MacMillan. While enjoying a full performance schedule at home with Houston Ballet, the company also toured throughout Europe and China. Mrs. Bacon Trad also filmed several works for Danmarks Radio in Aarhus, Denmark.

In 1996 Mrs. Bacon Trad joined Oregon Ballet Theatre. During her tenure with the company, she danced Principal roles in The Nutcracker, Giselle, Romeo and Juliet, Serenade, and Alice in Wonderland, to name a few. After leaving Oregon Ballet Theatre in 2003, Kristi enjoyed dancing with the multimedia modern dance company, Bodyvox.
 
Mrs. Bacon Trad was proud to join the staff at Elite Dance Studio in 2007. Kristi also joined the Jefferson Dance Program in 2008, and was the founder and co-artistic director of Jefferson Dancers II.

SHELLY
Shelly grew up in Tucson, Arizona where she started dancing at age three. She enjoyed arts and athletic endeavors including synchronized swimming where she competed on a national level. While these activities captured her interest, dancing was always her passion. She trained with Richard and Carrie France and was involved in a variety of dance groups thru high school. She was a member of Tucson Metropolitan Dance Company under the direction of Richard France. She intensified her dance training at UNLV where she obtained a degree in Fine Arts in dance. After graduation she moved to Portland and danced with the Agnieszka Laska Dancers and with Pure Dance Company. She started teaching at Elite Dance eight years ago and loves her Elite Family. Dancing has given her an opportunity to travel to Europe, train with famous choreographers, meet interesting people, and most of all remain true to her passion.