Dance classes went weeks without a teacher, students led the charge

At the start of the 2025-2026 school year, ARHS dance students expected to be greeted by a new teacher, knowing that dance teacher Remy Fernandez-O’Brien had left ARHS to move to Spain with their partner last spring. However, when students opened the door to the dance studio in August, there was no teacher in sight, and the students were told that hiring for the position was still in process. 

They waited over six weeks for a long-term substitute to be hired, and one of the classes is only 9 weeks in length.

From 2021-2025, Fernandez-O’Brien taught Intro to Dance and Intro to Hip-Hop Dance (both quarter-long classes) and Dance Theater Ensemble, DTE Hip-Hop, and Unified Dance (semester-long).

Since a teacher had not been hired by the start of school this fall, the C and D period dance classes on the scheduled were instead staffed by a rotating string of ARHS teachers or paraeducators who subbed during their prep periods, mostly observing as student leaders (some with limited dance experience) tried to teach the class. 

C period is a quarter-long Intro to Hip Hop course, while D period is a semester-long Unified Dance class that includes both students from the general education population and students with intensive learning needs from the Pathways to Independence (PIP) program, usually culminating in a performance for the community at the end. 

Unified Dance, like Unified PE, relies on a teacher with a strong knowledge of how to build an inclusive classroom and how to implement students’ IEPS (Individualized Education Plans).

According to Principal Talib Sadiq, he interviewed people for the position, and he selected one for hiring. However, he said that after a candidate clears that interview with the principal, the final steps are executed by Human Resources and then the superintendent. Sadiq said he did not know the reason the teacher was not hired, but Superintendent Xiomara Herman told The Graphic that the person declined the position on the basis of pay.

“While the candidate had strong experience as a dance instructor in a studio setting, she did not hold a Massachusetts teaching license or prior public-school classroom teaching experience, which are key factors the district considers when determining salary placement,” said Herman. “As with all district hires, offers for teaching positions are made based on established collective bargaining agreements and Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) licensing requirements. ARPS is committed to ensuring equitable access to arts education across all schools and to maintaining transparent, fair, and consistent hiring practices that align with these standards.”

However, a month later, though the position remained unfilled, there was no posting for a dance teacher on the ARPS Schoolspring page, and on October 8. The Graphic asked both Sadiq and the superintendent why that was. 

One day later, Sadiq announced to families of students in the dance classes that paraeducator Crystal Colon had been hired as a long term substitute, and said the school is still looking for a permanent dance teacher. A new post for the position was added to Schoolspring on October 15.

In addition to stepping in to cover dance classes this year, Colon was hired last year to substitute for a semester in health and PE, teaching Foundations of Personal Fitness; Unified PE; Net, Wall, and Target Games; Invasion Games; Health; and Child Development. And this year’s Unified PE class will be taught by English and special education teacher Marita Banda.

Senior Saara Rathod said she was disappointed and frustrated by the absence of a teacher. “We couldn’t [really focus on] anything related to the curriculum, and instead we practiced for our performing dance group or did work from other classes,” Rathod said. 

However, without a teacher to guide them, Rathod said they struggled to put on performances that were simple last year. “We did [dance] at the Amherst Block Party performance [this year],” she said, but noted they “had no seats for the people that were watching us because there was [no one to help us organize the event].” 

 Senior Cheyenne McKethan said her excitement turned to worry after over a month without a teacher. Though McKethan held out hope and stayed in the class with some of her classmates, a number of students gave up, “swapping out their dance class with another class.” 

She said she was “a bit angry that the school [took] such a long time to find a permanent teacher for our class,” McKethan said.  

McKethan said she heard that after the first hire fell through, Performing Arts Department Head John Bechtold recommended they hire a former student who thrived in the Dance classes at ARHS and has experience teaching high school-level dance at summer camps and working in other educational settings, including a pre-school program. However, Bechtold said he was told that there is a requirement that long-term subs need to have completed their bachelor’s degree to be hired. 

Before Colon was shifted from her paraeducator role during C and D periods and moved into a substitute teacher role, Banda subbed for the C-period dance class two to three times a week, but her responsibilities in both of her existing departments meant she couldn’t do it daily.

“I think [the students] were disappointed because they all wanted to learn more and weren’t able to really do that without a dance teacher,” Banda said.