In the afternoon a crowd begins to gather outside the door of classroom L102. Fresh, loud and full of bass, the sound of hip-hop music pouring through the open door attracts students passing by on their way to class.

As they peer in, they see fellow students dancing to the beat, being led by an energetic instructor. The instructor shows the moves slowly once, and then more quickly to see if the students have caught on and can follow along with her. Most of the students in the class are keeping up and dancing right along side her.

Jaami Waali began teaching Hip-Hop dance classes at Mesa in the Spring Semester of 2007. Waali instructs beginner and intermediate level Hip-Hop classes on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday each week from 12:45p.m. – 2:10p.m. Waali also instructs classes at various locations off campus, but thinks students will get more out of the class on campus.

“Taking a dance class at school allows the students to grow on concepts like rhythm and counting. Outside classes don’t have concepts you can grow on,” explains Waali.

According to Waali, her hip-hop dance classes are designed to give you an intense body workout while at the same time improving your stamina, strength, and the ability to execute body isolation as a dancer. She encourages students to come have fun as they learn new steps and listen to their favorite Hip-Hop and R&B music.

Joanna Lambarena, one of Waali’s students, said she likes the class because “There’s a lot of energy in it and it’s fun. The music gets you in the mood.”

Alex Otero, also a student of Waali, said, “This class is interactive and fun. We dance and have fun while we do it.”

The students will have two performances open to the student body for viewing. The performances are a part of their midterm and final projects. The beginner class will have a midterm performance March 12 and a final performance May 21 in classroom L101. The intermediate class will have a midterm performance March 13 and a final performance May 22, also in room L101.

Waali has a Bachelor of Arts in both Dance and Fine Arts from San Diego State University, along with over 10 years of experience teaching dance classes and founding and directing dance teams and troupes.

It was at the young age of 9 that Waali began dancing, starting off with jazz and ballet in Washington state, where Waali is originally from. It wasn’t until she was 14 that she began dancing hip-hop, and even organized a hip-hop dance team at her high school. She then went on to found an after school hip hop dance program for teens through AmeriCorps National Service.

While in San Diego, Waali founded the Kruciaal Element hip-hop dance troupe in 2003. The troupe performed in San Diego and Los Angeles County. She has recently re-founded this dance troupe to again showcase her choreography. You can find out more about Kruciaal Element on their Web site at www.kruciaalelement.com.

To see a complete listing of the off campus dance classes offered by Jaami Waali please visit her Web site at www.jaamiwaali.com.