No games, no problem: Golden State Warriors dance team members educate students during pandemic

Friday, April 3, 2020

Two members of the Golden State Warriors dance team are teachers at Bay Area schools, so they've kept busy during the pandemic by educating their students from home.

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- It was an exciting start to the season for the Golden State Warriors dance team inside their new home at Chase Center.

When the coronavirus hit, it seemed like everything stopped, but members of the team have kept busy.

"Yeah definitely busy," Areli, a member of the dance team said. "I've made sure to maintain a schedule to incorporate all of the activities that are required from our school."

Yes, school. On top of dancing for the team, Areli and Nicola are teachers. Areli is molding the minds of Kindergartners in Richmond, while Nicola is tackling 6th and 8th grade math in San Ramon.

"I've been hosting Google Meet meetings with my students, so they go log on and ask questions if they need to," Nicola said.

Much like dancing, Areli and Nicola's days are full of trying to master a new routine.

They're making quick pivots and improvising to meet the needs of their students.

In some cases, they've literally gone the extra mile.

"I actually did go and drop off packets to a few of my students' homes," Areli said.

However, most of the work is online.

The digital thread is holding the school community together, and now the dance community too.

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"All of the coaches and all of the dancers, we're a family," Nicola said.

The team is getting creative with the down time.

They've been hosting Instagram lives for fans where they're not only teaching some eight counts, but offering hope and discussing topics like goal setting.

They're motivating their thousands of followers to keep pushing forward.

"With dance and with teaching, I've noticed we've not only connected with people across the district, but across the nation." Areli said. "That's so special to know that you're all in this together and you're going to get out of this together as well."

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