Since I was in the fifth grade, I attended 4-H camps and as I got to middle and high school, I attended FFA camp held in Covington. Every night there would be line dancing. I have been line dancing for nine years now and I fell in love with learning the dances. My high school agriculture teacher attended ABAC, and told me that she took line dancing for her P.E. class. She suggested I do it too. This semester I signed up for the class and have enjoyed every second, and it’s only the beginning of the semester. I wanted to dig a little deeper into the class.
ABAC has had line dancing since the nineties but soon after there was a brief period of time where it was not available until the class was offered again around 2010. That’s when Coach Shannon D. Hawsey came to ABAC. Coach Hawsey has been teaching here at ABAC since 2008, 2010 she was approached to start the line dancing class again. Coach Hawsey has taught several different classes, including Aerobics, Water Aerobics, Yoga, Personal Conditioning, Walking, and First Aid and CPR.
Coach Hawsey said “Line dancing is a great way to get your exercise! It is so beneficial to the body. Not only is it great physical exercise, but mental and social exercise as well. I tell my students to use this class as a stress reliever, not a stress maker.” As a student in the class, I agree that line dancing gets a lot of stress out. With the amount of effort and energy that is put into dancing, line dancing is a workout.
When I asked Coach Hawsey what her favorite thing about line dancing was and she said “I love the fact that students seem to genuinely enjoy this class. I love that moment when a line dance finally clicks for someone who previously struggled. I feel like this class helps people step out of their comfort zone.”