With a newly-reinstated dance teaching credential and secured state funding for the arts in schools, it’s an exciting moment for California dance education right now. Tune in for this two-part episode as we speak with California dance teaching artists Gaby Mendoza and Carol Kueffer about how they view the new possibilities in dance education. Recorded June 6, 2025.

In Part 1, we give a little background. Gaby and Carol share their pathways to teaching dance in schools, before the reinstatement of the credential, and describe the teaching artist communities that kept them learning and kept them creative.

Part 2 dives into how the credential and Arts and Music in Schools Funding have impacted the dance education ecosystem, and a vision for what’s next.

With guests:

Gaby Mendoza

bio coming soon

Carol Kueffer

Carol Kueffer is a dance educator with Oakland Unified School District. She received her MFA in Dance from New York University. Her teaching is student-centered and she creates learning environments that celebrate our collective humanity where creativity and rigorous physicality flourish. Her choreography has been presented throughout New York, the SF Bay Area and Brazil. Carol was a founding member of the New York based company, David Dorfman Dance, touring internationally for eleven years. Her dance films with Dylan Moore can be viewed on Instagram @dylanedwardmoore. Website: carolkueffer.com