Anna has been teaching at Leap of Faith since 2013 and began her role as Director in 2020. She started dancing when she was 9 years old and enjoys all styles of dance. She received her Bachelors in Psychology from North Central College and her Masters of Public Administration with a concentration in Non-Profit Management from Northern Illinois University. 

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Anna strives to foster children's God-given talents and spiritual gifts. She has enjoyed watching her students grow in their talents and in their faith during her years at Leap of Faith.  Anna believes that Leap of Faith provides a unique service as a ministry and a performing arts studio, giving young girls and boys an experience that nurtures creativity, confidence and spiritual maturity.

"I am confident that Leap of Faith fills a need in the community unlike any other studio, and that we offer More Than Just Great Dancing. We offer love, care, guidance, and support both in and out of the classroom. It is a privilege to serve in this Christ-centered organization!"

Andrea has over 25 years of dance training and has taught dance classes since 2009. Andrea holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance Performance, from Stephens College. While attending Stephens she performed with Dimensions Dance Company for 3 years, and had the opportunity to study under and perform pieces by Deborah Carr, Jan Miller, Mary Rotella, Jim May, Gail Benedict, and Christopher Morgan, to name a few. 

She has trained in multiple forms of dance including: Ballet, Modern, Jazz, Contemporary, Theatre Dance, Tap, Tumbling, West African, Irish Step, and Russian Character.

Andrea's main passion is dance education. She loves being in the classroom and teaching dance to children and teenagers. Andrea has taught various styles of dance and tumbling at multiple dance studios in the Chicagoland area and has directed two performance and competition teams. Andrea is also the Shining Lights Team Director at Leap of Faith.  

Heather began dancing at the age of two and realized at a young age she wanted to be a part of dance for the rest of her life.  She studied ballet, tap, jazz, and pointe with a focus on ballet.  She studied dance at Ellis DuBouley School of Ballet in Chicago while in high school.  After taking some time off from dance she began taking classes again, and started teaching preschool dance classes.  

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Heather has a husband Mark and three sons Connor 27, Jackson 17, and Griffen 12 and has lived in Plainfield since 1989.

Emily started dancing when she was 3 years old at La Dance Academy in Romeoville, IL. When she was 7, she joined the Shining Lights Dance Team. Emily has trained in multiple styles of dance including Ballet, Tap, Jazz, Contemporary, Lyrical, Pointe and Hip Hop. Emily says that dance has helped her become a more confident individual.  She’s learned how to show her love for Christ through movement and how to praise Him while she’s dancing. During the 2014-2015 dance season, Emily had the opportunity to assist Alicia Carson. Helping Miss Alicia made Emily realize that she wanted to pursue teaching for herself.  

Miss Emily says “I’ve always had a passion for dance and a love for Jesus, and I am so grateful that I get to share these two things with the students at LOF. I believe that this ministry is an amazing gateway to lead others to Christ through dance!”

Kayla Rud took dance for 8 years focusing mainly on ballet, pointe and modern. She fell in love with the beauty of dance and continued to teach for 4 years before joining Leap of Faith. Kayla has also worked with children and youth through church ministry programs for many years with a focus on the arts and has a strong desire to bring inspiration and empowerment to students.

She is a wife and the mother of two beautiful little girls, Emma and Piper. Currently, Kayla serves at her church in leading one of the toddler Sunday morning classes as well as serving on the worship team. She loves to sing and also plays the piano. Kayla believes the Lord has called us to live empowered, joy-filled lives that are submitted to Him for the purpose of His glory. Kayla sees dance as one way we can fulfill that purpose.

Bio coming soon!