Jennifer Valinski began her dance and gymnastics training in St. Clair Shores at the age of five at Dancer‘s and Gymnastics Workshop. Later she moved to Warren and started classes at Professional School of Ballet. Jennifer started as an assistant at sixteen years old and by the age of eighteen was a full time teacher with over two hundred students. She has taught at The Professional School, Juliart Dance, Van Buren Parks and Recreation, Livonia Public Schools and P&P Dance. In 2001, she married and moved to Belleville and continues to teach while raising her son, Drew and daughter, Sarah. Later on, she created Jitterbugs Dance to start teaching children physical and health education through dance and tumbling. Through the years her local reputations has expanded all throughout Michigan. she is apart of numerous dance, gymnastic and educational organizations and certified in CPR and First Aid. Also, she has  donated my hours along with my students to convalescent homes, festivals, churches, schools, and various other organizations.  Finally, you will find Ms. Jennifer teaching Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday's

Nicole Heikkila began her dance career with Dance Express (Garden City, MI) and studied ballet, jazz, tap, lyrical, hip-hop and musical theatre for 15 years. She attended Wayne State University where earned her Bachelor of Arts in Theatre and a Bachelor of Science in Dance. She is now working towards her Master of Arts in Theatre and Dance Teaching Artistry. She is a current member of the National Dance Education Organization, and Michigan Dance Council. Nicole loves to teach dance as she hopes to share her passion while helping her students gain confidence, coordination, physical fitness, team work skills, and creativity. She is very excited to be back with the Jitterbugs Elite Dance family.   You will find Ms. Nicole teaching on Monday, Tuesday and Saturdays."

Courtney Payne has been dancing for fifteen years. She began her training as a competitve dancer at the age of 6, participating in community dance organizations until age  18.  Courtney's love for the Arts led her to enroll into Arts Academy in the Woods Charter High School, where she trained under multiple different ballet and modern instructors over the course of her four years. During high school, Courtney attended mutiple dance festivals and had the privledge of participating in many performances. This past year Courtney was accepted into Marygrove College and then transfered to Madonna University where she currently studies under Tracy Halloran and Steve Hadolla. During the 2017-2018 school year Courtney was chosen to perform at ACDA to represent Madonna's dance department. She also had the honor of taking part in a piece set by guest choreographer Brain Hare. Courtney will begin her second year at Madonna University this August where she will continue working towards her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. 



Alyssa Lawler

has been with Jitterbugs for 3 years and has brought an extensive dance background in a variety of styles and settings. She took her first dance class at the age of three in Rochester, Michigan and immediately fell in love with the art of dancing. She competed with Select Performance Team for 10 years, performing award-winning solos, small group, and large group routines in Jazz, Ballet, Lyrical, and Hip Hop. There, she became an assistant teacher for the younger dancers and developed her choreographing abilities. She was also a member of the nationally ranked varsity dance team at Stoney Creek High School, which specialized in Pom and Jazz. Alyssa is currently a student at The University of Michigan, where she performs at campus events and competitions with her hip hop crew, EnCore. She is working towards a degree inEcology and Evolutionary Biology, with a minor in Astronomy. Since she loves working with kids, she hopes to one day become a pediatrician.  

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Carrie Baker started her dance training at the age of three and continues to further and expand her career in dance by performing and teaching all over south eastern Michigan. Also, Carrie has receive a Business Degree and currently holds a full-time administration position at the University of Michigan.   When Carrie  is not at the office she focuses her time to teaching and learning various styles of dance. Carrie has taught a variety of dance styles locally for the past 10 years. She continues to perform and teach at recitals and community events. Her primary focus is in ballet, jazz and lyrical. 

2018/2019  Student Teachers

Ms. Abby~ Assist Ms. Jenn on Thursday evening adn she loves getting to know all the preschool and kinder Dancers personalities.  The best part of assist teaching is helping the dancers learn their recital pieces.   Ms. Abby

Ms. Arielle~ Assist Ms. Nicole on Saturday mornings.  Arielle loves teaching the little ones and how they look to her as a role model.  Ms. Arielle's favorite time of year is posing the dancers for dance pictures. 

Ms. Sarah~ Assist Ms. Jennifer on Wednesday Evenings and is learning lots of patience.  Sarah loves costume time with the Kinder's and how happy they are to recieve their costumes. 

Ms. Natalia~Assist Ms. Nicole on Monday Evenings and loves helping because it is fun and loves the hugs.  Ms. Natalia has learned patience and cannot wait to learn new things this year!