Glendale High dance team marks 20 storied years with two-night performance

Glendale High dancers commemorated their dance program’s 20^th anniversary on Thursday and Friday nights with performances that involved a variety of routines with multiple costumes and video footage of the team’s recent competitions.

Glendale High English teacher Kelly Palmer began coaching the team in 1996, promising in the beginning that she would lead the team for only six months.

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Now, 20 years later, 2,500 students have danced in the program, which boasts 57 national titles and “endless supporters,” she said.

The team was also selected to dance before millions of viewers during the opening show at the 2015 Rose Parade.

“It’s taken tons of help at every level,” Palmer said of the program’s success. “It really requires the support of people who see what it does for the kids in the long run, which really has nothing to do with dance. It has to do more with the work ethic that’s involved.”

Daniel Kim, 22, was a hip-hop dancer in the program during his four years at Glendale High.

He graduated in 2011, and now he’s one of the team’s coaches.

“Once you graduate and you’re out in the real world, you get to see the progress you [made] in high school and how it affects your life,” he said. “This program changed my life.”

He said he learned the importance of treating others with kindness and respect during his time with the team, and added that he is grateful to Palmer for leading by example.

“It starts with something like that,” Kim said.

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Kelly Corrigan, kelly.corrigan@latimes.com

Twitter: @kellymcorrigan

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