Jazmin Wali

transcenDANCE is a nationally-recognized Creative Youth Development non-profit organization serving San Diego teens. Our goal is to change the trajectory of students'​ lives by building resilience, confidence, and creativity and by teaching them life-changing skills such as collaboration, teamwork, and community engagement. This is done through a three-tiered approach within our CONNECT, CREATE, and CONTRIBUTE programs. Our legacy CREATE program does the deepest work with our students through a unique social change curriculum that combines intensive movement and technical dance training with self-reflection and the examination of local and global social issues. Students are taught not only how to master dance and performance, but how to assess their reality, build supportive peer and adult relationships, and express themselves through their voice and movement. The safe space transcenDANCE provides our students, the depth of our curriculum, the peer support, alumni mentoring, and adult encouragement all work together to lower drop-out rates, crime, abuse, and addiction. To learn more about transcenDANCE programs, please visit www.tdarts.org. the transcenDANCE mission is to guide youth in underserved San Diego communities to transcend barriers, expand their ambitions, and create positive change for themselves, their families, and their communities through dance and performance.