Diversity Dance Utah

Jen Burnett: Owner / Director, Company & Academy Instructor

Jen founded the studio in 2008. She saw a need in the area for a studio that was more family-focused and inclusive. Jen has danced since she could walk and has taught dance to both competitive and recreational teams for the past 18 years. With one degree in Film Studies and another degree in Elementary Education, Jen has experience in producing and teaching, which help her in her responsibilities in the studio. Jen has won many choreography and studio awards over the years. She has an incredible staff that supports her in all her goals, one of her main goals being giving dancers a safe and positive environment to dance in. Being in the dance world has brought her many life lessons, opportunities, and life-long friendships. Jen feels very blessed to know she is part of these dancer’s childhoods and considers herself fortunate to have this as her career. Apart from directing the studio, Jen is a mother of two amazing kids and considers the studio a part of the family. She is also a lover of all things Harry Potter, Disney, road trips, history, tubing rivers, camping, diet coke, and chocolate.

Heather Jones: Studio Manager

Heather has been dancing for over 25 years. The second she stepped into the studio she knew she was home! She danced, assisted and taught classes for years while growing up in Cache Valley. In high school, Heather danced with the drill team and was a member of the team presidency her Senior year. During college, she continued to take classes wherever she could find them. Once she married her high school sweetheart and started her family, she took Zumba classes as often as possible just for a few minutes of dance time. Eventually she started teaching Zumba for fun. Her daughter has been dancing with Diversity Dance since she was 2 and Heather has loved it here. She shares her passion of dance by keeping everything organized!! The studio would not run without her brilliant behind-the-scenes work. When not dancing, Heather is a proud mother to three beautiful children and is a loving wife. She runs an Etsy shop and is finishing her college degree online. She also has a huge love for photography, blogging, sewing, and panda bears.

Natalie Porter: Ballet Director

Natalie Willes Porter has danced and been an arts advocate all her life. Starting from the age of 3, she received instruction from some of the very best. In 2011, she received her bachelor's degree in Dance Performance from WSU where she received full tuition scholarships in choir and dance each semester she was there. While attending Weber State, Natalie performed with Orchesis Dance Theater, Moving Company, attended American College Dance Festival Association, attended a worldwide acknowledged conference in New York City where she was able to take classes at Alvin Alvey Americal Dance Theatre and Broadway Dance Center. She has been fortunate enough to bestow her love of dance through teaching and coaching in studios, drill teams, and award-winning solos. In 2016, Natalie became an SSA certified personal trainer and was able to train clients pertaining to workouts and nutritional guidance within a gym atmosphere. Natalie has a great love for all the performing arts but singing and musical theater have a special place in her heart. She has been a member of numerous choirs, special groups, and musicals throughout her young training years as well as throughout college and afterwards. Natalie's greatest calling and accomplishjments in life have been her family. Married in the Bountiful LDS Temple to her husband of 14 years, they are blessed with three beautiful children, Paizlim Greyson, and Beckham.

Alyson Croft: Company Instructor

Alyson Croft loves the world of dance and grew up doing so most of her life. She was an all-around gymnast and power tumbler as well! In high school, Alyson was a member of the Bonneville High drill team which won the state championship title in 2005. She went onto study at Utah State and graduated with a degree in Public Relations and danced with the Utah State University Hip Hop Crew; Vilociti. She was the tumbling director and dance/tumbling teacher at Airbound Gymnastics for seven years while also assistant coaching the Sky View Vistauns from 2011-2015 where their team earned a Region Championship title. Alyson currently lives in Mantua and has stayed in the world of dance by choreographing for local drill teams and judging both drill and studio competitions. She and her husband Andy have three busy and awesome kids and love to be outside, on the water, and making yummy food together. Besides dancing, Alyson loves baking, cooking, yoga, hiking, boating, and decorating.

Jenie Labrum: Creative Movement and Academy Instructor

Jenie was raised in South Eastern Utah and has loved dance since she can remember. Having four younger sisters, Jenie began teaching dance early. She would hold “dance” classes for all the neighborhood kids. In junior high and high school she danced on the school Drill/Dance teams and had the opportunity to take ballet classes from CEU. To give back to her community, Jenie taught dance classes once a week to younger dancers with her teammates. Jenie was fortunate enough to gain a dance scholarship and was able to dance in college where she fell in love with contemporary dance and performing arts. Jenie was also a member of the Baggerettes; the Snow College dance team, which afforded her many amazing dance experiences. After college, dance took a backseat as Jenie’s growing family became the love of her life. She still found ways to fill her love of creative dance though with teaching aerobic classes, which include floor, step, kickboxing, spinning, hip hop hustle, Zumba, interval, and currently Jazzercise. Jenie immensely enjoys teaching children the art of dance, how to move their bodies and express themselves through their movements. She loves to teach them HOW to dance and how to LOVE dance, which is what Creative Movement is all about.

Sydney Bott: Company and Academy Instructor

Sydney was born and raised in Perry, Utah. She has loved to dance since the first year she competed at the age of 3 years old. She grew up dancing in jazz, hip hop, lyrical, musical theater, and contemporary. She has trained at many national conventions with the industry's top instructors in all genres. Sydney was a member of the Box Elder Drill team for 3 years. She was a Top Corp nominee twice and received an Epic Drill camp award for Most Improved. She was an officer for two years and her senior year, she served as Drill Captain, Sydney loves to travel and has had the opportunity to travel to Australia, New York, Boston, and Nauvoo where she was a performer in the Nauvoo Pageant. Sydney loves teaching and sharing her passion and love for dance with her students. She hopes to inspire and help her students reach their highest potential in dance and in life!

Alyssa Call: Ballet and Academy Instructor

Alyssa was born in Brigham City and graduated from Box Elder High School in 2021. Alyssa has grown up dancing. She studio-hopped all over Brigham City till she fell in love with Diversity Dance. She danced here from ages 12-17 then began assisting for several years and even taught ballet for one year. Alyssa is currently attending Utah State University where she is majoring in Kinesiology, She is so excited to be back at the studio and help the young dancers grow!

Cherry Burnett: Creative Movement, Assistant Tumbling Coach

Cherry gets to be the grandmother of the studio as she is Jen’s mom! Cherry was born and raised in the big city of Ogden, Utah. She spent her whole childhood tumbling and dancing. After marrying her high school sweetheart, she wanted a big family. Her wish came true with four wonderful children who grew up way too fast. Cherry also runs “The Cherry On Top”, which is workout classes in the studio weekday mornings at 5:00 AM! Cherry loves working with children and she has 50 years of experience in gathering kids together, teaching them to learn and grow, and to have fun together. Cherry’s goal in life is to be an example of kindness and to help others see the good in themselves by doing their very best. Cherry is excited to work with your children and to assist the parents in building great kids with high self-esteem and a bright future!

Heather Nelson: Front Desk Receptionist

Heather is the mom of three wonderful children; Kayla, Sean, and Gemma. All three of which have loved being a part of the DDU family over the past 13 years. Heather has also enjoyed her time at the studio. It has given her the opportunity to watch her own children grow as she witnesses and appreciates all the work that goes on behind the scenes. Heather runs her own small flower business with the help of her husband, Rod. She absolutely loves working with flowers! It is what makes her happiest. When she's not working, some off her favorite activities include hanging out with her kids, going for rides in the mountains, vacationing, playing card games, and going on road trips. She owns way too many potted plants, she loves listening to true crime podcasts, and she celebrates Halloween all year round!

Annie Bywater: Front Desk Receptionist

Annie was born and raised in Brigham City and feels so lucky to be raising her own family in this beautiful town. All she ever wanted was to be a mom and now she has three beautiful daughters. With three girls, she especially has wanted to be a dance mom! She loves Diversity Dance and what we stand for. Since starting her girls in dance, she has watched them grow and gain more confidence in themselves. She runs a small daycare out of her home full time and has done that for 15 years! Babies and kids bring her so much happiness so she is literally working her dream jobs between daycare and working at the studio. With her family, she loves to hunt, camp, swim, play softball, play with their doggies, and DANCE! (Obviously)

BriAnn Peterson: Front Desk Receptionist

BriAnn was born and raised in Roy. She is a stay-at-home mom to her four kids, ages 10, 8, 6, and 4. She received a BS in Criminal Justice/Forensic Science Investigation and is working toward a BS in Business Admin/Human Resource Management. She lives vicariously through her husband, an Adult Probation & Parole Officer. In her free time, she is learning Spanish. BriAnn loves watching her two girls dance and two boys play hockey and soccer. Much of the family's nights/weekends are spent at one of the two places. She loves traveling to the Pacific Northwest and hiking all the beautiful waterfalls.

STAFF