Earlier this summer, Dance Initiative announced the hiring of its new Executive Director, Joan Dizon. As a second-generation Filipino immigrant, mother of three, professional dancer, and real estate investor, Dizon is excited, honored, and humbled to take on the role.

She and her family lived in the Philippines before moving to the Valley a little over three years ago. When she saw a flyer saying the Dance Initiative was looking for teachers, she decided to try her luck and joined the organization in October 2023. She started by teaching hip-hop dance in schools. Once she connected with the dancers in the community, she said it was a welcoming experience.

“Once I settled in, everyone was very welcoming and extremely kind, and the community was warm and open. They welcomed me and my family with open arms when I walked on stage,” Dizon explained.

When she first got involved, she was drawn to the dance initiative’s accessibility, especially for children in the Valley. Although Dizon had extensive experience as a professional dancer, she had limited learning opportunities as a child.

“As a child of immigrant parents growing up here in America, I had friends who would go to dance studios to attend dance, jazz, tap and sophisticated dance programs. My parents didn’t have a lot of money when they came to America. They worked all the time, and even then we didn’t have any extra income for concert fees, studio fees or classes,” Dizon said.

She practiced in her room and then at age 18, after graduating from high school, she began taking professional lessons, mostly hip hop. While studying and working at the University of Texas at Dallas, she was able to afford the lessons. She joined the college’s dance team and continued to penetrate the dance world by teaching in gyms and performing professionally.

“At some point I was dancing for both the NBA and NFL in halftime shows and then I was also dancing for some fitness programs with Nike,” Dizon revealed. “From there I continued teaching because I loved it.”

The executive director position opened up while Dizon was already working as a teacher. The initial warmth she felt in the dance community was a driving force behind her application for the job, as were the aligned values ​​of outreach and accessibility.

“Everything I love about dance aligns with the mission and vision of the Dance Initiative. It was a fitting position for me,” she explained.

Dizon is determined to build on the strong foundation laid for her by the original and current board and staff. “I am just so grateful to the founding members of our board and the people who laid our foundation with their mission,” she said. “As executive director, I want to build an even stronger community of dancers.”

Dizon is looking forward to the upcoming teaching season and other events this year, including an annual fundraiser on Oct. 27 themed around Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” and hip-hop classes at the school with Quincy Gray. Dizon said that in addition to planning new events in her role, she and the organization are open and receptive to feedback from the community and new dancers.

“I would love to invite anyone out there to give us feedback or ask questions. For our kids, we would love to see more dance out there. I’m excited to see our programs expand and see more dance brought into the community,” she concluded.

For more information about the Dance Initiative, including classes and events, visit www.danceinitiative.org