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Studio Seventeen Earns YPAD Certification
Hampton Roads dance studio earns certification – holding to a higher standard of integrity in dance education
Carrollton, VA: March 1,2019, Studio Seventeen, a local dance studio providing dance classes for toddlers through adults announced that they have earned YPAD (Youth Protection Advocates in Dance) Certified status.
Becoming Certified means they are committed to age appropriate artistic choices and healthy teaching techniques and behaviors to nurture the Holistic wellness of their students. Educators at YPAD Certified studios are committed to being positive role models both in person and online and are committed to keeping youth happy, healthy, and safe in all dance environments.
The faculty and staff of Studio Seventeen completed the training over the past 6 months.
“We are so proud to be the only dance studio in Hampton Roads with this certification. At Studio Seventeen, we have always held these values, and now we are so grateful to have an organization like Y.P.A.D. that stands behind us. It about so much more than great dance technique, we are shaping a whole child " Mind, Body, and Spirit.”
-Presley Shields, Studio Director
There is no governing body for dance education for children, and no legal requirements for education or certification for studio owners or dance instructors. Organizations in the dance industry who willfully become YPAD Certified subscribe to a higher standard of integrity and accountability through education using evidence based research over opinion regarding best practices with youth in dance.
To achieve the YPAD Certification status, the faculty/staff at Studio Seventeen completed the following requirements:
Online Certification that covers modules on emotional and physical healthy and sexual safety of youth in performing arts
Background checks for every employee
CPR certification for all core staff who could be supervising children
All staff signed and agreed to standards ensuring safety for children in social media, abuse observation and reporting, bullying, physical health and injury, age appropriate artistic choices and more
Emergency Plan implementation
Studio Seventeen is proud to offer mommy and me classes, adult dance classes and everything in between. From preschool dance classes to advanced teen ballet classes and competitive programs the staff is dedicated to educating the whole student. Studio Seventeen is proud to be a “Happy, Healthy, Safe” Y.P.A.D certified dance studio.
Youth Protection Advocates in Dance is dedicated to building empowered dance communities and keeping youth happy, healthy and safe in all dance environments. To find out more please visit www.ypad4change.org.