2025 Instructors

Our Teachers

We hand select teachers who not only are experts in their field, but also are friendly and inclusive of all participants. Each year we select instructors from a diverse backgrounds ensuring a wide variety of countries and dance styles are represented.

Aaron Alpert

Israeli Dance

Aaron Alpert started dancing even before he was born! The son of two dancers, Aaron attended his first camp, Rikud in Los Angeles, at the age of 2 months, although he remembers very few of the dances from that weekend. At age 9, he first attended Alonim, a Jewish summer camp, and started getting serious about Israeli dancing. He began to teach as a freshman at UC Berkeley, via the Israeli dance “DeCal” class, and he was soon teaching and DJing at other local classes.

He opened a monthly Saturday party in 2012, named Nirkoda (Hebrew for Let’s Dance). In 2019, he founded Nirkoda Ba’Kerem, a full weekend camp, which continues to be held annually. During COVID-19, Aaron shifted to online events, in which his cat Steve was the undisputed star. Later, he and Latishya Steele opened a weekly outdoor class, which eventually moved indoors, becoming the current Nirkoda Le’Chayim session.

Aaron has also taught Israeli dance at several international camps, including Stockton, Mainewoods, Laguna Festival, and Mendocino Folklore. Aaron is super excited to join the Kentucky Dance Institute community and share some wonderful Israeli dances with all of you!

Marcie Van Cleave

Contra, English Country Dance, Line & Children’s Dances

Marcie Van Cleave is the Executive Director of the Folk Arts Center of New England, based in Boston, Massachusetts. By day she runs the organization with a mission to “promote the participation in the traditional folk arts of many countries, particularly music and dance”, and by night - she dances!

Marcie has shared her love of dance with groups in Boston, throughout New England, and around the world! She has taught international, morris, ceilidh, English country and New England-style contra and square dancing to adults and schoolchildren in villages and towns as far-flung as Hrazdan, Armenia and Liberec, Czech Republic, as well as enjoying teaching at camps such as the Thanksgiving Camp in Black Mountain, North Carolina and … of course … KDI in Murray, Kentucky! This spring Marcie received the annual Preserving Our Heritage Award, given out annually by the National Folk Organization.

Jacob Madsen

International Dance

Jacob Madsen received his MFA in Dance in 2022 from Montclair State University. His masters thesis project titled “Percussive Roots” dove into the cultures of his family tree and presented percussive dance forms from each culture.

He taught as Adjunct Faculty at Brigham Young University from 2017-2022 and is the founding Artistic Director of Percussive Footwork Ensemble, a tap dance performance company in Utah.

Jacob is currently a project manager for the Utility company in Wisconsin, managing the metro Milwaukee area and is teaching at several studios near Milwaukee, is the Dance Director for Main Street Song and Dance Troupe, and teaches private lessons of many styles of dance.

Paul Henze

American Square Dance

Paul Henze entered square dancing “through the back door.” He started clogging with his wife in 1976 at Chattanooga State College. Later, Paul’s curiosity got the best of him and he met a lot of square dancers who challenged him to start lessons.

In 1981, Paul attended his first caller’s school let by Cal Golden and Gene Trimmer and was “subbing” for local callers and doing limited traveling. In 1983 he was asked to become the first caller for the “Rainbow Riders” in Cleveland, TN. That gave him the opportunity to teach his first square dance class and he has been teaching ever since.

In 1986 Paul joined Callerlab and his love of teaching extended to holding caller schools for the local caller’s association and teaching at multiple National Square Dance Conventions. A few years later, Paul attended the Caller-Coach school, Super School East, and became hooked, becoming a Callerlab Accredited Caller Coach in 1993. By 1995, Paul was asked to become the Vice Chairman of the Callerlab Caller-Coach Committee and became chairman three years later.

He currently maintains a plus program at home in Chattanooga and a multi-cycle square dance class. His loving wife Pattie assists in teaching line dancing and cueing. Paul also puts his 34+ years of experience to good use teaching 1 night square dance parties for the Chamber of Commerce, Girl Scouts, Churches and community Groups.

Camp held at Murray State University, 102 Curris Center, Murray, KY 42071