Heidi Kloes

• Position: dance Teacher  
• Degrees & Alma Mater: bachelors in voice and in communication studies, master of performing arts administration 
• School Activities: starlettes
• Years at Caney Creek: 12  
• Years Teaching: 12   

How would other people describe your high-school self? 

I’ve always been a little bit nerdy, which I’ve embraced about myself. Bookworm—definitely always been a bookworm. I love reading. Artistic, creative, and quiet.  

Was there a career you wanted to pursue OR pursued before teaching? 

Yes, when I was little, I wanted to be a veterinarian because I love animals, then realized that you don’t get to just play with the animals. My degrees are because I was interested in either being a press secretary for a politician, and the voice degree was because I wanted to be a performer.  

Tell us about how you got into teaching. 

I’ve been teaching in dance studios since I was in high school as an assistant and then continued that path when I was in college. During my college years, I started choreographing during that time as well for a music theater company. That’s always been like a side job for me, and then when the dance teacher here was leaving, my sister, who also works here, Coach Kloes, called and said, “Why don’t you just come and try this for a little bit and see how you feel about it? Nothing else, it’s a nice steady paycheck till you figure out what you wanna do, and 12 years later, here I am.  

What do you do outside of school for fun? Why? 

I sometimes go with my sister; we do trivia nights on Wednesdays at a local food truck park. My primary source of extracurricular fun is working at a music theater company choreographing and directing shows there. Until this last year, I was also doing my grad school program. I’ve also been a competitive ballroom dancer. In addition to that, for myself, I love to read, and I love to hang out with my friends and family. It’s really nice that my sister is here because we get to spend a lot of time together.  

When people get to know you, what are they most surprised to learn about you? Depends on where they meet me, I guess. That I sing, maybe, or that I’m as smart as I am, because I feel like dance teachers get a bad rap about not being smart people, which is very ironic since a lot of my Starlets this year are at the top of their class.  

What is something you know a weird amount about that isn’t related to something you teach? 

The TV show The West Wing.  

Tell us the story about what you are most proud of yourself for. 

I took a year in my early 20s and committed to moving to New York to try the performing arts, which is a very scary, stressful decision to make because you’re never really sure if it’s going to work out or not. So I moved there with a friend and lived there for about a year. I learned a lot about myself, the performing arts, and made the decision to leave after a year, but I am very grateful for that year of experience and that time in my life growing and figuring out who I am.  

Who is someone you are thankful for and why? 

My sister. She’s just always been such a big role model for me, and I am so grateful for her every day because I feel like even still to this day, she’s helped me out randomly. I can call her anytime and say, “Hey, I need your advice, I need your opinion, can you give me some feedback? How can I fix this?” or just help. She’s always been there for me. She’s also such an incredible person.  

What advice would you give to your younger self? 

Don’t be afraid to take chances.  

What do you hope to be remembered for? 

The love I show to people that I care about, especially here, how much I care for my students and how much I love working with them and seeing them grow. I really hope people remember me for being a caring person who made others feel better about themselves and helped them find who they really are.  

What’s on your bucket list?

Traveling more. Honestly, I love traveling. I just don’t get to do it as much because I overbook myself during the school year and over the summer.  

What aspirations do you have for the future? 

I would love to see the program started here at Caney Creek grow, especially in my department specifically, but in general. Aspirations for myself: I would love to keep working for a professional-level theater company at some point in time, and I’d like to get back to my ballroom competition.  

Favorites  

• Food: Baked goods  
• TV Show: “The West Wing”
• Movie: “Captain America: The Winter Soldier”