Ethel Walker School
Elisa Dey says her time at Walker’s helped her fall in love with dance all over again. Trained in ballet, modern, and improvisation, Dey began dancing at the age of four and studied in some of the most-competitive programs in her home country of Germany, even moving away from home at just 12 years old to study professionally. When her training program ended in 10th grade, she began to look for new opportunities and came to Walker’s through the highly competitive US-based ASSIST program, which creates life-changing opportunities for outstanding international scholars to learn from and contribute to the finest American independent secondary schools.
That move has proven to be a life-changing one.
“The dance program at Walker’s helped me look at dance in a different way. Instead of seeing it as pain and competition only, I fell in love with the art of dancing again, and this gave me so much motivation.”
Dey decided to stay on past her scholarship year to finish out her senior year at Walker’s and used that time to continue to pursue a variety of dance styles, including African and Indian, hip hop, and jazz. “I wanted to come back to Walker’s because the friendships I made here are so strong. I love the small and supportive environment and generally I just feel like Walker’s gave me so many opportunities for my future that I wouldn’t want to miss!”
Next year, Dey will head to her top-choice school, George Mason University, where she will pursue a BFA in dance. She says she’s looking forward to having a rigorous training schedule again in the competitive program. Her goal is to become a professional dancer with companies across the U.S., and then go on to one day teach at a university. She credits Walker’s with helping her prepare for reaching her college dreams and says that graduation time has her reflecting on many things she will miss from her two years on campus: “What I will miss most at Walker’s is the people here. Not just my friends but also the faculty. I don’t think I’ve ever felt so comfortable and safe with teachers and dorm parents ever before. They always made sure we felt like we’re at home here. I always felt so supported throughout my two years at Walker’s.”
