Miss Donna's School of Dancing
Meet Our Staff
Miss Donna
Owner
Miss Donna has been involved in the dance world all of her life. Her grandmother and mother danced in Vaudeville and Off Broadway. therefore when she was barely age 2, she started dance lessons. She danced at Caroline Daniels School of Dance until she was 17. She graduated from Queens College with a degree in primary education but since she had opened a dance studio while a freshmen she decided to continue with her studio instead of teaching school.
Through the years she has choreographed children's TV shows, Charlotte Summer Stock Theater, Carowinds Theme Park and many public school productions. She has also judged competitions all over the USA for the past 20+ years. Many of Miss Donna's students are now dancing professionally on cruise ships, theater, in Hollywood and numerous commercials. Miss Donna is very proud to say that 10 of her former students now have their own studios.
Miss Shannon
Recreational Director
Miss Shannon was really born into the business, with Miss Donna being her mom she started dancing at the age of 2 and teaching by the age of 16. She traveled every summer to New York to study under master choreographers such as Savion Glover, Sheila Barker, and Frank Hatchett in hopes of becoming a famous dancer. She soon realized that as much as she loved to dance her heart was in teaching. The joy she got from seeing each child she taught love dance as much as she did made her heart smile. Watching them grow each year and become great little dancers in their own way.
"After 39 years of teaching I have hung up my dance shoes to focus more on the operations of Miss Donna's. My heart will always be with the children even though my feet may not be. I want to thank you for letting me be a small part in your child's life."
Miss Ashley
Competition Director/Instructor
Bio Coming Soon
Miss Jana
Competition Director/Instructor
Jana Smith has been dancing since the age of three and is trained in all styles, specializing in jazz, lyrical, contemporary, and hip hop. She trained at a competitive Charlotte studio and studied with renowned choreographers including Gus Giordano, Frank Hatchett, Sheila Barker, Mia Michaels, Brian Friedman, Jason Parsons, and Mandy Moore. As a competitive dancer, she earned numerous scholarships and trained in New York City for several summers. After high school, Jana received a full dance scholarship to the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, where she earned a B.A. in Dance Performance and Education in 2004. She was also a member of the nationally successful college dance team and traveled across the country with NDA, teaching and choreographing for high school and college dance teams. Jana has been teaching at Miss Donna’s School of Dancing since 2004. She choreographs nearly 100 competition routines each year, earning numerous regional, national, and world titles, as well as multiple choreography awards, including Choreographer of the Year at the World Dance Championships in New York City. She takes great pride in inspiring students who have gone on to successful professional dance careers, including performing with the touring production of Cats and the world-famous Rockettes.
Miss Megan
Competition Instructor
Megan Hornung is a performer and professional dancer from Charlotte, NC. She began her dance training at the age of three and she grew up dancing at some of the most competitive dance studios in the Charlotte area. She continued her dance training as the youngest member of the traveling tap troupe Tapaholics and also appeared as a principal dancer in the off-Broadway production "Slide" while still attending high school. Megan also gained experience traveling to multiple cities such as Los Angeles and New York to train with many renowned professional dancers and choreographers, before receiving her Bachelor's Degree in Dance from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, with a concentration in Dance Studies. While attending college, she spent countless hours training and performing with the UNCG Dance team, the Spartan G's. She began teaching at local studios upon returning home and held the position of Competition Director for several years at her previous studio. Her unique and award-winning choreography has earned numerous awards and accolades across the state throughout the last decade.
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Miss Neely
Competiton Instructor
Hi I’m Neely Hill. I have been teaching at Miss Donna’s for 23 years! I began dancing at the age of 2 and I haven’t stopped since. I was also a Honeybee for the Charlotte Hornets in my college years. By day, I am a kindergarten teacher and I love working with children. I have two daughters, Harper and Rowyn, who dance competitively for Miss Donna’s as well. Dance is my passion, and I love sharing my passion with your children!
Miss Brayden
Competition Instructor
Bio Coming Soon
Miss Brooke
Competition Instructor
Bio Coming Soon
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Miss Alicia
Long Creek
Manager/Instructor
Miss Alicia teaches both recreational and competitive dance for Miss Donna’s. Miss Alicia has been dancing since the age of 2. She started taking dance at Miss Donna’s in the footsteps of her mother Mary, who also danced with Miss Donna since the age of 2. After about 6 years of taking recreational dance Miss Alicia joined the competition dance team where she furthered her knowledge in all subjects of dance including Tap, Jazz, Ballet, Lyrical, and Hip Hop until she was 18. After graduating high school, Alicia attended community college and started to assist Mrs. Shannon where she would end up learning so much more about dance, and even more so the joys of teaching. This is now Miss Alicia’s 17th year teaching for Miss Donna. Miss Alicia loves to teach and loves to be around children. She has two children, Adalyn and Arya. Addy is starting her 10th year of dance and Arya will be starting her 6th year! Miss Alicia is ready for another great year!
Miss Jessica
Harrisburg Manager/Instructor
Miss Jessica started taking dance at the age of two, graduating with 11 years of recreational and competitive technique at 18. Before taking a break from dance, she assisted with various instructors at Miss Donnas. She assisted her sister Miss Alicia at the Long Creek location for recreational and competitive in the past, but she is managing and teaching the best students at the Harrisburg location! Passion is in every smile that comes through the door, the light in student’s eyes when they finally conquer a new step. With her mother Miss Mary, and sister Alicia, two nieces in the competitive team, it’s safe to say dancing is in her bones!
Miss Amelia
Indian Trail Instructor
Miss Amelia started dancing with MDSD at the age of three. From an early age, she was drawn to dance because her grandmother previously owned a dance studio. She spent 14 years with MDSD up until her high school graduation. Miss Amelia recently graduated from UNC Charlotte with her bachelors in Elementary Education and when she is not at the studio she is a 5th grade classroom teacher. Miss Amelia is very excited about starting her 8th year as a teacher at the studio and plans to continue to share her passion for dance for years to come!
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Miss Sonja
Sardis Instructor
Miss Sonja, a Charlotte native, began dancing at the age of two at the Bethlehem Center and joined Miss Donna’s School of Dancing at age eight. By middle school, she was a teacher assistant and competitive dancer. During her years at MDSD, she received the Merit and Scholarship Awards and earned a college dance scholarship from Star Systems Dance Nationals in 1992. She attended North Carolina A&T State University, earning bachelor’s degrees in Business Administration Management and Office Administration. While there, she performed with the Blue & Gold Marching Machine as a member and co-captain of the Golden Delight flag and dance squad, and also served as co-captain of the Aggie Essence dance team. She later earned her MBA from Pfeiffer University.
Miss Sonja has trained in many styles of dance, with a passion for tap, jazz, liturgical dance, and flag twirling. She has taught at the Bethlehem Center, coached the West Charlotte High School flag and dance team, and taught in St. Louis, Missouri. One of her proudest achievements was choreographing a first-place overall 12 & under jazz duo at the 2013 Headliners Regional Dance Competition.
Miss Alex
Indian Trail Instructor
Miss Alex is a Charlotte native with 25 years of dancing experience and 11 years of teaching experience. She started dance at 3 years old, danced competitively for a local studio for several years, and even took on dancing at the collegiate level as part of Western Carolina University’s nationally ranked dance team for 3 years. After graduating WCU in 2017 with her bachelor’s in business administration and marketing, she joined the MDSD staff as an assistant, and has since become a head teacher at both Sardis and Indian Trail locations and helped assist on the Competition team for the past 4 seasons. Miss Alex is excited to begin her 7th year of teaching at Miss Donna’s! Her favorite style of dance is jazz because it is upbeat, sassy and FUN! In addition to her job at Miss Donna’s, she works as a Data Specialist. Miss Alex just got married in May 2023, and when she is not teaching, she loves to spend time with her husband and their two dogs, Olive and Miller. Dance has always been her passion, and seeing her “dance babies” on stage at the end of every season sharing that same love and passion is what makes working at MDSD the most rewarding for Miss Alex.
Miss Pauli
Harrisburg Instructor
Hi, I'm Pauli and I have danced for 10
years recreationally and competitively. I have been an assitant teacher for 5 years with Miss Donna School of Dancing. I love every minute of it! l'm a total Dance Aunt at heart, cheering on every dancer and celebrating their big (and little) wins. My classes are all about having fun, trying new things, and building confidence through movement. Whether we're grooving to hip-hop, spinning in jazz, or just being silly during warm-up, I'm here to make sure every dancer feels welcome, supported, and excited to dance! I cant wait to dance with you!
Miss Emily
Indian Trail Instructor
Bio Coming soon
Coach Rachel
Bio Coming Soon
Miss Sherrie
Miss Maria
Bio Coming
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Miss Kim
A Chance to Dance
Director
Miss Kim is a proud mom of three beautiful daughters. She's a former UNCC 49er Gold Duster and she took her very first dance class at Miss Donna's when she was 2 years old. While she loves all styles of dance, ballet and lyrical are her favorite. Dance has always been a part of her life. Kim's youngest daughter Reagan is on the autism spectrum. Inspired by her daughter she dreamed of starting an inclusive dance program for the special needs community and in the summer of 2015 that dream became a reality when Miss Donna gave A Chance To Dance for special needs a home. She's very proud to be a part of Miss Donna's School of Dancing. Kim's life verse is Galatians 6:9.
Miss
Bio Coming