SHINE: DANCE + MATH = SUCCESS
Garces Memorial High School Dance Studio, 2800 Loma Linda Drive, Bakersfield, CA 93389
About
SHINE: DANCE + MATH = SUCCESS includes formal dance training, kinesthetic learning activities, and small group tutoring. The program also includes Snacks and Bonding, Dance, and a Final Day of SHINE where girls perform choreography in front of family, friends, and teachers, complete with costumes, awards, and snacks.
• Ages: 11–18 years old
• Price: SHINE is FREE to all participants
SHINE: DANCE + MATH = SUCCESS is a nationally recognized, innovative, curriculum-based, after-school program for middle school students. Utilizing kinesthetic learning, the program combines formal dance training with rigorous math instruction and covers national math standards from 6th–8th grade. The SHINE curriculum features 3 different levels and covers Arithmetic and Order of Operations; Fractions, Decimals; Pre-algebra; Coordinate Geometry; Planar Geometry; Probability and Statistics; and Advanced Word Problems. SHINE girls are 6th–8th grade girls interested in improving math scores, developing confidence, learning about STEAM careers, and participating in a program that empowers women. Each session of SHINE serves 30 girls and 10 mentors, and an online application is required for both SHINE girls and mentors.
SHINE mentors are local high school or college women who have qualified based on their math background, tutoring experience, dance experience, attitude and enthusiasm, and the results of a background check. The mentor training involves a customized online certification system along with a half-day mentor training session. Mentors receive training in working with young girls and teaching math and dance, leadership opportunities at a young age, and access to a national network of women in STEAM.
Jessica Johnson, KDA SHINE Lead Mentor, is a professional dance artist, a bilingual woman in STEAM, and has directed KDA’s SHINE program since 2017. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Statistics and a minor in Psychology from CSU, Bakersfield, has worked as a data analyst for Adventist Health, and has taught math and computer science in both middle and high school. Her dance background comes from nearly two decades performing and coaching Color Guard teams throughout Kern County. Wendy Wisheropp-Brice, KDA SHINE Lead Mentor, is a professional dancer and woman in STEAM who has worked with the KDA SHINE program since 2023. She holds an Associate’s Degree in Mathematics from BC, a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from CSUB, and a Master’s in Education, Curriculum and Instruction from Fresno Pacific University, and she teaches 9–12 grade Advanced Algebra, GATE Geometry, and AP Statistics at Liberty High School.
KDA is a nonprofit arts agency supporting and promoting dance and the arts in California’s Central Valleys, specifically Kern County. BAKERSFIELD is the first city in California and on the West Coast to offer SHINE via a partnership with KDA, and SHINE is free to all participants and made possible by donations from the community. SHINE has received positive feedback from national media including CNN, CBS, Fox, and the Boston Globe. In 2022, KDA was awarded a $4.2 million grant and selected by the California Arts Council to be an Administering Organization for the California Creative Corps. As the only branch in California and on the West Coast, KDA offers the SHINE program free of charge to all participants.
Last updated June 16, 2026.
• Ages: 11–18 years old
• Price: SHINE is FREE to all participants
SHINE: DANCE + MATH = SUCCESS is a nationally recognized, innovative, curriculum-based, after-school program for middle school students. Utilizing kinesthetic learning, the program combines formal dance training with rigorous math instruction and covers national math standards from 6th–8th grade. The SHINE curriculum features 3 different levels and covers Arithmetic and Order of Operations; Fractions, Decimals; Pre-algebra; Coordinate Geometry; Planar Geometry; Probability and Statistics; and Advanced Word Problems. SHINE girls are 6th–8th grade girls interested in improving math scores, developing confidence, learning about STEAM careers, and participating in a program that empowers women. Each session of SHINE serves 30 girls and 10 mentors, and an online application is required for both SHINE girls and mentors.
SHINE mentors are local high school or college women who have qualified based on their math background, tutoring experience, dance experience, attitude and enthusiasm, and the results of a background check. The mentor training involves a customized online certification system along with a half-day mentor training session. Mentors receive training in working with young girls and teaching math and dance, leadership opportunities at a young age, and access to a national network of women in STEAM.
Jessica Johnson, KDA SHINE Lead Mentor, is a professional dance artist, a bilingual woman in STEAM, and has directed KDA’s SHINE program since 2017. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Statistics and a minor in Psychology from CSU, Bakersfield, has worked as a data analyst for Adventist Health, and has taught math and computer science in both middle and high school. Her dance background comes from nearly two decades performing and coaching Color Guard teams throughout Kern County. Wendy Wisheropp-Brice, KDA SHINE Lead Mentor, is a professional dancer and woman in STEAM who has worked with the KDA SHINE program since 2023. She holds an Associate’s Degree in Mathematics from BC, a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from CSUB, and a Master’s in Education, Curriculum and Instruction from Fresno Pacific University, and she teaches 9–12 grade Advanced Algebra, GATE Geometry, and AP Statistics at Liberty High School.
KDA is a nonprofit arts agency supporting and promoting dance and the arts in California’s Central Valleys, specifically Kern County. BAKERSFIELD is the first city in California and on the West Coast to offer SHINE via a partnership with KDA, and SHINE is free to all participants and made possible by donations from the community. SHINE has received positive feedback from national media including CNN, CBS, Fox, and the Boston Globe. In 2022, KDA was awarded a $4.2 million grant and selected by the California Arts Council to be an Administering Organization for the California Creative Corps. As the only branch in California and on the West Coast, KDA offers the SHINE program free of charge to all participants.
Last updated June 16, 2026.
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