SDA FACULTY

Team SDA and Elite Level 3 dancer, Addison McGovern, said “I love how he makes class fun, and makes me never want to stop dancing. He makes me a better version of myself!”

Sofie Payne

Ms. Sofie is entering her fourth year of teaching at SDA. She is an alumnus of both Shreveport Dance Academy and the Shreveport Metropolitan Ballet, and she has over 21 years of continuous dance experience! Not only is Ms. Sofie the Team SDA Director, but she also taught 6-7 Jazz, Elite Level 1 Jazz, Elite Level 2 Jazz, Elite Level 3 Jazz, and Elite Level 4 Jazz.

Katelyn Pavlick, Team SDA member and Elite Level 4 Senior said, “Sofie has been the best mentor and friend to me this year. She has shown me what a strong young woman should be like and inspired me to be a better dancer and person altogether. Sofie always pushes us to be the best we can be even on our bad days. She has taught me many qualities that I can carry on to college next year such as kind, caring, and compassionate. She genuinely cares about each and every one of us. I don’t really have one favorite memory with Sofie but I always look forward to our talks or funny stories before classes each week. I will always cherish our friendship and will forever miss dancing with her.”

Paige Vergo

Paige began dancing at the age of two, and has continued for the last 24 years! Growing up, she studied classical ballet, and trained in the Cecchetti method. She began dancing competitively at the age of 8.