Justine Allen
Green Belt

Greenville, SC

Green Belt, When I took my first Nia class, I danced, and my body smiled and breathed a huge sigh of relief to move in a way that felt so natural and sooooo good. After taking ballet, tap and jazz as a girl, I had tried ballet again as an adult, but there was no smiling in any part of my body. It seemed forbidden! So I danced at home, at parties, at clubs.

So great was the pull of Nia that I always thought in the back of my mind that I would like to share it with others, although I had never had the desire to teach anything before.

In the meantime, I moved to Greenville and struggled to find a Nia class close to home. After my daughter’s first birthday, I realized I needed to do some things for myself, namely exercise and have some fun. Finally I had a revelation, I will teach my own classes!

In 2008 I received my White Belt from Denive Medved, who emanated Joy from her entire being, inspiring me to find my own; then took the Green Belt with co-founder of the Nia Technique, the inspired Carlos Rosas. And now I am a teacher, and what a delightful journey it has been so far. www.NiaNexus.com

Lia Barth
Brown Belt

Hendersonville, NC

Lia is an enthusiastic Nia instructor who came to her first Nia class hoping it would help her lower back pain. The whole-body movement was fun, interesting, challenging, relaxing, energizing and healing. She was hooked. Lia brings play and fun to each class and guides her students to sense their Body's Way and the Joy of Movement.

Lia received her White Belt in 2000 with Denise Medved in Hendersonville, and,with Nia creators Debbie Rosas and Carlos AyaRosas, received her Blue Belt in 2006 and Brown Belt in 2010. Lia enjoys co-creating special events with other teachers, including Nia fundraisers for local organizations and visiting nursing and assisted living homes with the "Nia Dancers".

Contact Lia at 828-697-7449 or liabarth59@gmail.com.

Elizabeth Boleyn
Black Belt, Green Belt Certified

Asheville, NC

In Nia, we teach people that dancing is anything the body does" (The Nia Technique, Rosas & Rosas, 2004, p. 296). Elizabeth has been dancing Nia since 2000. She recently returned to her Nia roots in Asheville to complete her doctoral research focusing on the 'voice of the body' in adult transformational learning. She is thrilled to dance, share, learn and co-create with fellow students and teachers. People are drawn to Elizabeth's classes for inspiration! Students experience release, freedom, fun, joy, detoxification, cardiovascular conditioning, healing, laughter and pleasure, while getting fit at the same time! Just do it! Nia will change your life.

Contact Elizabeth at 828-708-7058 or by email info@movemeantunlimited.com

Kimerly Edwards
Blue Belt

Rutherfordton, NC

Kimerly received her White Belt in 1999 and Blue Belt in 2001. She is a North Carolina-licensed school psychologist in public service and private practice. In addition to her dance and Nia training, Kimerly has studied integrative movement and therapeutic dance with the Educational Kinesiology Foundation and the American Dance Festival at Duke University. She participated in a cultural dance program in West Africa with Baba Chuck Davis of the African American Dance Ensemble. Kimerly frequently teaches Nia in Jamaica, where she and her husband have adopted two schools and maintain an abiding love for that island nation.

Kimerly's Nia classes came to a sudden halt in April 2006 when she sustained serious injuries in a cycling accident. She consciously incorporated the basic movement principles of Nia (The Body's Way) into her rehabilitation, which supported her complete recovery.

Kimerly brings a joyful enthusiasm and professional knowledge to her classes. Her love of dance, her performance experience, and her commitment to the growth of her students make each class fun and unique.

Contact Kimerly at jahrules@bellsouth.net or 828-429-0862.

Natalie Grinnell
White Belt

Asheville, NC

As someone who's been dancing through life since birth, when I found Nia I certainly felt like so many others who say they found what they'd been looking for all their lives. My parents have pictures of me dancing with my Donnie and Marie Osmond microphone from the time I could walk and talk, and tell stories of me dancing in the aisles when they took me to see Grease for the first time. After years of dance classes from the age of 3, I feared my opportunities to dance would be severely limited upon college graduation and entrance into the world of working adults. My fears were dispelled the moment I took my first Nia class. The strong, organic and expressive movements and non-competitive feel to the class had me at hello!

Feeling a strong desire to share this joy with others, I received my White Belt training in November 2003 and started teaching in 2004. In addition to my joy of teaching, I am a performer at heart. I am most blessed to sing with The Muses, an a cappella trio that includes myself, Judy Rhodes and Gail Forsyth. You can check us out at www.ashevillemuses.com . I also help people feel more beautiful both as a freelance make up artist and with MAC cosmetics.

You may reach me at nrg@charter.net or at (828) 275 5377

Maureen Jablinske
Brown Belt

Asheville, NC

Rousing sensations deep in my core, first dancing Nia in the late 1990s, I knew I had arrived home and met my tribe. YES!

Around the same time, I lost my job and began seeking clues as to my next move. Inspired by a question in Wish Craft, I asked myself, Where do you find joy? The answer came clearly: DANCE!

Shortly after, I was certified to teach Nia, training with Holly Curtis in Austin, October 1998. I trained further with co-creators Debbie and Carlos Rosas in October 2000. I completed Brown Belt training in 2006.

Before leaving Austin, I thoroughly explored her rich dance community, enjoying Nia classes, workshops, playshops, as well as yoga, Trance and African dance, Soul Motion, Five Rhythms, Body Choir, toning, and other practices. Vibrational healing especially resonates with me.

I am dedicated to sharing Nia as a vehicle for fitness, self-healing, and personal transformation. I love the multidimensional aspects of Nia and am honored to share her with you. I invite you to be your own teacher, to open to sensation, notice without judging, and explore your body's innate wisdom.

Contact Maureen via email at perchance2dance@gmail.com

Judi Lampert
Brown Belt

Asheville, NC

B.A., M.M. holds fitness certifications with ACE, AIFE, and SCW EDU ... and is pleased and excited to have earned her Nia Brown Belt (2009) and Blue Belt (2006) with Nia originators, Carlos Rosas and Debbie Rosas, and her White Belt certification with trainer Denise Medved in 2005.

Judi has taught group fitness, stretch, music, and ballroom dancing classes in community and university settings for over 20 years. She is a classical flutist and teaches at UNCA plus she and her husband, Foster, have over 30 instructional videos on learning to dance at www.dancelovers.com.

Judi has always enjoyed the 3 aspects of fitness that fuse together to form Nia: martial arts, dance arts, and healing arts. She is thrilled to now share Nia as a safe and effective, fun and freeing, low impact journey to a playful body, mind, and spirit connection. You are enthusiastically and warmly invited to join her and discover the joy of Nia for yourself.

Contact Judi at 828-645-2527 or email her at NiaJudi@charter.net .

Dianne Lancaster
White Belt

Asheville, NC

I walked into my first Nia class in the summer of 2000 at a retreat in San Diego. At some point during the class, I was brought back to the joyful feeling I had as a child dancing ballet. My sleeping dancing spirit was finally released. At that moment, I knew that Nia would always be a part of my life. I was hooked and took several classes each week.

In the spring of 2006, I received my White Belt in NYC with Caroline Kohles and Winalee Zeeb. I was fortunate to be living in NYC at that time and was able to continue to take Caroline’s classes and workshops. I had the deep desire to teach and share the joy of Nia, but it wasn’t yet my time.

Now I live in the beautiful mountains of Western North Carolina. Embraced by the wonderful Nia Carolina community, I began teaching at their local jams in March of 2011. Although eleven years have passed since my first class, it is now time for me to teach. I embrace the Nia philosophy, through movement we find health. I want to share this with people, so they can find the joy of movement in all aspects of life.

Contact Dianne at 914-282-8741 or email her at niadrummer@yahoo.com.

Jenny Lumb
Blue Belt

Asheville, NC

I fell in love with Nia at my  first class. The way the instructor  invited me to make the movements my  own, make them feel good. The way  she said I could not do it wrong.  It was all so inviting and  encouraging. I found a new way of being in  my body, of being in the  world. Now I recognize it as the Nia principle  of Dancing through  Life. There are so many aspects of Nia that I love, but my favorite is that  all parts of me get to come out and play with Nia. The parts that are  fiery and those that are flowy, quiet and loud, hard and soft.

In 2006, I went to the Nia Headquarters in Portland, OR and received my White Belt training from the co-founders of Nia, Debbie Rosas Stewart and Carlos AyaRosas. I furthered my training with Carlos for the Green Belt in May 2010 and with Helen Terry for the Blue Belt in October 2010. It has been my absolute pleasure to share The Joy of Movement in classes I taught in my former home of Seattle and also with hotel ballrooms full of people at healing retreats around the country. I am loving my new life in Asheville and the business my husband and I created in the burgeoning River Arts District. Nourish & Flourish is the area's premier resource for Extraordinary Living.

I can be reached at 828.255.2770 or visit my website at www.NourishFlourishNow.com

Kat Mansfield
White Belt

Fort Mill, SC / Charlotte NC

Certified Nia® White Belt Instructor, Kat Mansfield, lives in the Charlotte, NC area with her husband and son. She has had a lifelong passion for all forms of movement, including dance and martial arts. Kat is a Certified Ageless Grace® Educator and also holds a 1st Degree Black Belt in Taekwondo and a B.A. in Theatre from the University of Central Florida.

After stumbling across her first Nia class overseas in Bahrain with Nia Black Belt Instructor, Jane Goodwin, she was hooked! Kat's classes have an inviting, playful energy that is welcoming to all ages and abilities.

Contact Kat at 980-475-2194 , visit her website www.MoveWithKat.com or email her at MoveWithKat@gmail.com

Denise Medved
Black Belt/Trainer

Hendersonville, NC

Denise is a youthful 56-year old, Denise has been featured on television, in publications such as American Fitness, and at such internationally acclaimed facilities as Canyon Ranch Health & Fitness Resort, Tucson, AZ, The Oaks Spa, Ojai, CA & The Pebble Beach Resorts, Pebble Beach, CA.

Denise was a senior officer and board member of one of the largest communications companies in New York City for 14 years, as well as a marketing & PR consultant in California for another 11 years. She brings excellent marketing & stress management skills to her trainings!

She also utilizes more than 35 years of acting, singing & dancing experience to make every Nia class fun and unique! Movement classes, playshops & retreats are also a part of her business, Feather on the Moon, a spa without walls for the body, mind & spirit. She is in a Masters program in Gerontology and specializes in movement for those with physical challenges, injuries and those over 65 years of age.

Denise can be reached at 828-696-3060 or email her at nia@magicalweb.net . Visit her web site at www.niasouth.com.

Annie Sparks Poteat
Black Belt

Asheville, NC

Annie began her joyous journey with Nia in 1997, after a soul-searching quest to find and express her unique purpose through her work. After completing her White Belt Intensive with Trainer Denise Medved, Annie introduced Nia into the Asheville community in 1998. In 2002, Anne co-founded Move Intuit, Asheville's first Nia Center, with Elizabeth Johnson. Anne has consistently been active as a teacher, as well as Nia promoter and mentor for other teachers as the Asheville Nia community continues to grow and thrive. Annie received her Nia Black Belt in 2005..

Annie's classes are alive with a spirit of playfulness and joy, providing students with a physically safe environment that is flexible enough to meet their fitness needs today and to grow with students as they grow. That joy is contagious, and she invites you to catch it by dancing with her in a class soon!

Annie may be contacted at 828-768-8809, or by email to NiaSkywalker7@aol.com

Elise Pratt
White Belt

Brevard, NC

One evening in 2006, I dragged myself into the health club to do my 10,000 repetitions…..but to my surprise, as I opened the door, I was lured by the most intoxicating music and vocal sounds into a little room of joyful, playful, dancing, free-spirited movers and shakers.  I joined in and knew immediately it was “goodbye reps” and “hello NIA”!    It touched my love of dance and music with creative and joyful movement…and it touched my soul with a sense of well-being and of losing myself in the moment.  Lia Barth inspired me, Denise Medved trained me and, now, as a White Belt NIA instructor since 2008, I teach others (and NIA teaches me) so much about mind/body/spirit connection.

Earlier life included tap, ballet, jazz dancing, a BA in French, traveling the world as a Pan Am flight attendant, working as a graphic artist and owning a jazz club in NYC, acting in dinner theater, singing jazz,  tennis coordinator for resort events, managing my husband’s business intelligence clients and being the caregiver in his brave struggle with Parkinson’s disease.
  
As an active retiree now, NIA is a perfect activity for keeping me ready, willing and able to be learning “new-to-me” skills and enjoying this part of life.

Contact Elise at meirby129@yahoo.com

Shelli SuZanne Stanback
Black Belt

Asheville, NC

Certified Black Belt Nia Instructor and Integrative Arts Practitioner lives with her family in the Newfound Mountains near Asheville,NC. Shelli is the President of Body MInd Energetics,Inc., holding extensive training and multiple certifications in the Movement, Expressive, and Ceremonial Arts. Shelli also has a BA degree in Integrative Movement and a three year Art of Healing Professional Training. One of her passions has been to bring Body-Mind and Inspirational-Centered classes, playshops, and private sessions to her community. Shelli has been a guest instructor for many events in support of the Womanly Arts such as: Time for Our Power Women's Conference, Manifesting your Dreams workshop intensive, Women's Health Conference, Girls for Girls, and Mother Grove Concert.

For the love of life, joy, and our bodies Shelli offers Nia and In Motion classes and other transformational classes using integrative techniques to create what she calls the "The Inner Awakening". "I have found that my mind can hide behind corners, but when I ask myself something somatically, I respond with a deep honesty."

Shelli's other interests are frame drumming, artistic endeavors, and basking in the beauty and benefits of nature with her family and friends.

"Nia is such a joy-filled movement form that continues to bring me ongoing cardiovascular conditioning and inspired awareness of my body, mind, and spirit." Contact Shelli for Nia and In Motion classes, Transformational Playshops or private Somatic Life Enhancement sessions at 828-231-5995.

Email at shelli@daaancing.com or visit www.BodyMindEnergeticsinc.com

Terese Schoen
Blue Belt

Charlotte, NC

Nia awakened Terese from all pain to tremendous gain. Twenty-five years ago Terese
endured a severe spinal cord injury, health that was spiraling our of control including
told sheʼd never do more than walk again, diagnosed with fibromyalgia, chronic
migraines, and even double bunion surgery. Two weeks after her 4th car accident ( 6
total and none her fault :) she walked into her first Nia class. Before class started the
instructor said to move your bodyʼs way and to stay in the range of joy.....she thought
“Wow! What a concept” “Today I am going to honor my body and stay in joy; not push
to pain.” Terese stayed in the back row, quiet, and wanting to blend in or simply fade
away. She was in such a misunderstood and pain-full time of her life. The music was
amazing. Vowing to honor her body she moved in joy. After class.....NO pain. Next
day.......NO pain. Terese realized Nia is a vehicle that heals.

Her passion for health and healing had been reawakened. A month later she became a white belt instructor, then blue. Her path was lit up. She always knew holistic heals.....she is now in the drivers seat.........and that is NO accident.

She continued educating herself and is now a licensed Bio-feedback Specialist,
licensed Spiritual Life Coach, Energy Healer, and Ageless Grace Educator. She has
her own thriving practice in Charlotte, NC, called MIT Health. Mindful Intent
Transformation. “Change Your Thought, Change Your Life!” She also has a Sleep CD
being launched fall of 2011 along with a radio talk show with Voice America in 2012.
Marcel & Schoen. Terese loves sharing the joy and empowering people with ways to
heal. Love life again! Click here to go to Tereseʼs web site: www.TereseSchoen.com or
www.MITHealth.com

Mindful Intent Transformation Health....”Where Science and Spirit Come Together”.
Always remember to inhale LOVE and exhale FORGIVENESS! Terese is HOPE!
Never stop Dancing through Life! Heart to Heart