Meet Our Team!
Amy Gard- Director
Amy is a proud (almost) native of Colorado, moving throughout the state since she was three years old. She began her dance training at the age of 10 and has been teaching and choreographing since 2006. She attended Mesa State College as both a Dance and Mass Communications major under the instruction of Melonie Buchanan Murray and Matthew Lindstrom and had the pleasure of working with artists such as Adam Parson, Caitlin Gray, Holly Lampe, and Leslie Meek during her time there. Amy moved to Denver in 2010 where she has had the tremendous experience of functioning as the Administrative Director at a pre-professional ballet academy and as the Competition Director of a competitive studio over the course of eight years. In addition to creating a number of award-winning pieces for her home studios, Amy has also helped foster the development of young choreographers in both solo and group settings. She has guest choreographed at a number of studios throughout Denver and across the U.S., as well as taught at numerous summer intensives. Amy continues to coach the Colorado School of Mines dance team, which she began in 2011, and has performed with companies such as the Aspen Santa Fe Dance Connection and Mind & Body Dance Theater. She also enjoys working with area high schools on musical theater productions, including her time spent at Arvada West High School choreographing "Footloose". She appreciates all dance styles but particularly loves working in a variety of genres including contemporary, hip hop, jazz, lyrical, and tap.
Amy is a dog fanatic and baseball guru and loves every moment she gets to spend with her family. She is thrilled to continue living out her passion for dance and helping to inspire and support young dancers along their journey.
amy.gard@rootsdancedenver.com
Kate Mina- Director
Kate is a Colorado native who began teaching in 2008, and has teaching and choreography experience in a variety of genres including tap, lyrical, contemporary, jazz, poms and musical theater. She grew up in Colorado Springs where she danced at Robin's Danceworks under the direction of Robin Moore, performing and competing for 11 years both regionally and nationally. Her teaching career began at her home studio where she instantly fell in love with instructing and choreographing. Kate graduated in 2013 Summa Cum Laude from Rider University in New Jersey with a degree in Sociology, where she also studied dance under the direction of Dr. Kim Vaccaro and the faculty of the Princeton Ballet School and the American Repertory Ballet. Kate served as the President of the Rider Dance Ensemble, an opportunity that allowed her to direct multiple dance productions and choreograph pieces in various styles for shows and events. She has taught at workshops and intensives in Colorado and New Jersey. She earned her Master of Social Work Degree at the University of Denver in 2015 and worked as a full-time School Social Worker for four years. Her choreography across many styles has received awards at a number of competitions over the years and earned her an invitation to the Dance Teacher Summit.
Kate has a deep-seeded obsession with musicals and loves spending time with her extended family exploring their favorite mountain towns during the summer months. She is honored to have the chance to impact the lives of young people who share her same passion and fervor for dance.
kate.mina@rootsdancedenver.com
Mary Davis
Mary Margaret Davis is contemporary-based dancer and competition choreographer who has devoted the last 10 years of her life to training in contemporary, jazz, hip-hop, modern, acrobatics, and ballet. Mary has choreographed over 80 competitions routines under Roots Studios since 2019 and began teaching in 2021. In addition to choreographing, Mary has also toured a full season with Artist Simply Human Dance Convention as an assistant for the 2022-2023 season. Having grown up in the competition and convention world, Mary developed an undeniable love for performing and showcasing high athleticism in all of her performances. Therefore, she ensures in all of her classes that strength training and performance aspects are incorporated to form strong dancers. Mary Margaret’s goal while teaching is to create a positive and motivating environment where all children can simultaneously thrive while feeling challenged. In Mary’s free time she enjoys cycling and strength training classes, baking healthy sweets, rhinestoning costumes, and of course dancing as much as she can. Mary Margaret is dedicated to advancing her knowledge in all aspects of fitness and nutrition to help guide dancers into becoming strong, healthy individuals. To support this, Mary is currently pursuing a bachelor’s in exercise and sport science while in the process of becoming a certified personal trainer.
mary.davis@rootsdancedenver.com
Kenny Allen
Kenny is a Colorado native and started his dance training when he was 2 years old in the Denver area. He studied at Denver School of the Arts and even trained under Amy Gard at Denver Ballet Theatre Academy. He then moved to Tampa to train with Next Generation Ballet before being offered a Trainee position from Boston Ballet School. During his time in Boston, he was given the opportunity to represent Boston Ballet School at the Prix de Lausanne Partner School Choreographic Project. Upon finishing school he accepted a Studio Company position with Sarasota Ballet. After two seasons the then took an Apprentice contract with Colorado Ballet. He has since been promoted to Corps de Ballet. Some of his accolades include First Place classical at YAGP in Tampa and Denver, National YoungArts Winner, Silver Medal at ADC IBC, Bronze Medal at World Ballet Competition, and First Place at Denver Ballet Guild. He has also attended summer intensives at the School of American Ballet, ABT, Paris Opera Ballet, and Royal Ballet School.
kenny.allen@rootsdancedenver.com
AJ Lukenbill
AJ started dancing at 2 years old and began dancing competitively at age 10. AJ furthered her dance training when she joined Eaglecrest High Schools Varsity dance team in her freshman year. AJ was named All-American 3 years in a row, All-State her senior year, and helped lead her team to Eaglecrests first Hip Hop state championship in 2019. AJ was also named Female Athlete of the Year at Eaglecrest in 2020. Following graduation, AJ danced competitively with Roots Studios and Peak Athletics, as well as being an instructor with the National Dance Alliance, which lead her to falling in love with choreography and to wanting to teach the sport that she had learned and loved for the past 18 years. AJ has trained in hip hop, acro, ballet, pointe, musical theatre, jazz, tap, lyrical, and contemporary. AJ us pursuing her dream of becoming an EMT and will be attending the EMT program through Denver Health this year.
aj.lukenbill@rootsdancedenver.com
Lizzie Reese
Lizzie joins Roots with a vibrant career spanning the past thirteen years as a professional dancer, educator, and more recently a competition director. Growing up in Colorado, training and dancing gave her the bug to experience the dance industry both in the United States and internationally. Her time professionally dancing includes the Walt Disney Company (Disney World, Disney Cruise Line, and Disney Live) and Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida. Her latest professional job was a tour with Sesame Street Live as both a performer and dance captain with Feld Entertainment. Lizzie's diverse experiences encompass television appearances, parades, cruise ships, and filmed shows.
Her journey in dance began at a young age and she has trained extensively throughout childhood until now, honing her skills and passion for the art. Now, as she embarks on her first year teaching at Roots Studios, Lizzie is thrilled to share her passion for dance with her students. Her goal is not to just create well-rounded dancers, but most importantly, good humans.
Her dog Goose is her mascot for life. Yes, you can see pictures at any time.
lizzie.reese@rootsdancedenver.com
Julia Galloway
Julia grew up in Charlotte, North Carolina where she trained and competed in all styles of dance and gymnastics for 15 years. She has had the honor of being a finalist on America’s Got Talent seasons 9 and 10, backup dancing for Guaynaa, and traveling the world as Viking Ocean Cruises Principal Dancer. After living in Orlando for four years and performing for Walt Disney World, Universal Orlando Resort, and the Orlando Magic, Julia made the move to Miami to continue her journey with the NBA as a Miami Heat Dancer. She now calls Denver, Colorado home, where she continues to teach and perform. Julia has been an adjudicator for the last 6 years and currently travels the country with Showstopper as a judge and host. Julia feels truly blessed with all of the doors that dance and performance have opened for her in her life and is grateful to have the opportunity to share in your journey as well.
julia.galloway@rootsdancedenver.com
Natalie Weaver
Natalie is a Colorado native who started dancing when she was 3 years old. She has trained in many styles including contemporary, jazz, lyrical, and hip hop, and competed for 12 years. She has grown a passion for sharing her love of dance with younger students and watching them grow throughout each season. She is currently a student at Metropolitan State University where she is studying Business and Dance. Natalie is beyond excited to work with the students at Roots Studios, and can’t wait to watch as they grow into beautiful humans!
natalie.weaver@rootsdancedenver.com
Sammie Harper
Sammie, a proud Colorado native and current senior at Legend High School, began her dance journey at the tender age of 3. Over the years, she has honed her skills in ballet, pointe, jazz, contemporary, and hip hop, though her true passion lies in tap dance. Since 2017, Sammie has been dancing competitively, thriving on the adrenaline rush of performing on stage.
With a love for working with younger students, Sammie has been teaching and assisting for the past five years. This summer, she has the rewarding experience of working with elementary students in the Douglas County School District's Before and After Care program. Sammie is thrilled to bring her enthusiasm for dance and teaching to her new dance home, eager to inspire and guide the next generation of dancers.
sammie.harper@rootsdancedenver.com
Kaylie Lambert - Student Teacher
Kaylie has grown up in Colorado and attends Cherokee Trail High School. She started dancing at 2 years old and instantly fell in love with it. She began competing at 4 years old. Kaylie has trained in a variety of styles including ballet, tap, lyrical, contemporary, jazz, hip hop, pointe, and modern. She has worked as a teaching assistant at Roots Studios for the past three seasons and loves helping all of the younger students grow and improve their dancing. She is very excited for the opportunity to continue helping younger students, and for the chance to grow and learn as a student teacher!
Alessa Franks - Student Teacher
Alessa was born and raised in Colorado and currently studies dance at Denver School of the Arts. She began dancing at 3 years old and trained in many different styles of dance, including tap, jazz, hip hop, and ballet. Alessa began competing at age 5, and will be working this season as a SoulElite with Soul de Soul Dance Convention. As a teaching assistant since she was in 8th grade, Alessa has been able to share her love of mentoring younger students, helping them grow their technique and providing a safe and comfortable dance environment. One of her passions is finding her creative voice through exploring the choreographic process with her peers. Alessa is so excited for the opportunity to continue to guide younger students and to learn, grow, and connect with them this year as a student teacher!