For Sarah Oldmixon, the art of dance has been a lifelong passion she has shared with the local youth for more than three decades. She knew from the her first dance class in the sixth grade she wanted to be a dance teacher.

She started her own dance school in 1987 and named it Miss Sarah’s School of Dance because that’s what the students called her.

The children she teaches typically start learning to dance at age 2 and continue until they are 18, so she considers them to be like family. 

For the younger children, she starts them out on an immediate reward system to teach them the structure they will need to excel in dance as they grow. They start out by learning tap and ballet, and as they age progress to jazz and others.

“It’s a process like their ABCs,” Oldmixon said. “It’s a discipline like any other sport, with each year we teach them more.”

Her dancing career includes being a Saintsation in the early 90s, and teaching dance while attending college.

A number of her students have gone on to become part of their high school’s dance team, cheerleading squad and even opened their own dance schools in other parts of the country.

Beginning in first grade, Oldmixon said she implements a competition aspect of her classes to entice the children to attend more than one class a week. Her goal is to see growth in their skills.

“I can see the kids get better when I see them twice a week,” Oldmixon said.

Becoming an accomplished dancer is not the only lesson she teaches. Not only do the students learn to take direction from another adult other than their parents, they learn that they can’t always do what they want and in turn become effective adults because they learn to focus on the task at hand. She said those skills are what employers look for.

Each year, Oldmixon said she comes up with new routines for the students to learn to keep her classes fresh, which is the hardest part of her job.

While Oldmixon is the primary teacher, she does employ the help of a college student as her assistant.

Hours vary at the studio, located at 104 Oak Street in Picayune. Oldmixon can be reached by calling 601-799-9084.