Passionate Instructors, Inspiring Young Dancers
Our Team
Master Instructors are crucial to our mission for elite guidance. We hand-pick each instructor to ensure our mission remains true and children are fed the right amount of artistic nourishment needed to allow them to grow and flourish in our garden through the four primary stages; starting with the egg (stage 1), caterpillar (stage 2), chrysalis (stage 3) and ultimately butterfly.
A Trip Back in Time
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Let’s roll the clock back to 1985, in a Caldwell classroom with 17 sixth graders and their teacher, Mr. Larry Miller. It was the 125th anniversary of Kansas statehood, and their mission? Come up with a project to celebrate the state. After tossing around ideas and nearly settling on a bull snake, nominating an ornate box turtle as our state reptile took the lead. They wrote letters. They made their case. And against all odds, they gained statewide attention—thanks to a newspaper editor who just happened to love ornate box turtles. That little class trekked to Topeka and testified before the Senate. And on April 14, 1986, in Caldwell’s school gym, Governor Carlin signed the bill naming the Ornate Box Turtle the official state reptile of Kansas.” The following year, the Caldwell Governing Body, with the help of the class of '92, by City Proclamation declared Caldwell the Ornate Box Turtle Capital of the World.
The Inbetween
Caldwell is officially named the ‘Ornate Box Turtle Capital of the World’! That same year, our first turtle mural was painted by artist Marty Kapron, thanks to local legend Cleda Baker. And yes, folks, we even had Turtle Wars—some worried the turtle would replace our wild west identity. But don’t worry, the turtle survived… and so did our cowboy pride.” Fast forward a few decades, and a simple email about Wamego’s Toto statues planted a seed with our City Administrator, Leah Sommerhoff. Then, in 2024, during a project to create Caldwell-themed Christmas ornaments, one of our local crafters sent back an unexpected design: a cowboy riding an ornate box turtle. It was the perfect mashup of our wild west roots and our turtle legacy. And the crowd went wild! Shirts, stickers, koozies—you name it, we made it.”
Turtle Tales
WHAT'S THE DEAL WITH THE TURTLES?
A lesser-known fact about Caldwell is that we are the Ornate Box Turtle Capital of the World. Often overlooked, until a local family combined our two histories of being a wild and rowdy cowtown and the OBT Capital of the World together into a now beloved image. The turtles pay homage to a history unique only to Caldwell. Read on for more history!
