Performing at lunch on Sep 15, 2023, Valerie Tena and I dance Jalisco for Mexican Independence Day. Baile and performing makes me feel empowered and confident. Getting to show off my Mexican culture makes me immensely proud.

Almost every student has looked forward to their senior year, or at least wondered what it’d be like. It’s the year before being let out into the real world of adulthood, so it’s a huge deal to a lot of students. The number one thing I was most excited about my senior year was my final year taking the Baile Folklorico class. Although it is a bittersweet feeling, I want to end my senior year with spectacular memories so when thinking back, I’d remember the passion the class brought out of me and my classmates.

Oscar Benavidez is the teacher in charge of the Baile Folklorico program and has been since 2019 after Ramon Silva retired after 25 years of being the Baile Folklorico teacher. Even though he’s only been working as an Alisal teacher for 4 years, he’s done an amazing job at creating a safe environment in his classroom and does a spectacular job at teaching his subject. The program’s vestuarios (stage clothes) and resources used to be funded by Benavidez, club money, and donations from family and friends. Fortunately, in the middle of last year, the district offered the program a grant. With Benavidez’s planning, he was able to purchase vestuarios and materials that could be used for future years to come.

Last year was my first year in the Baile class and right off the bat, I was extremely nervous about what the class had in place for me. On the first day, we were informed that the 5th period class was going to be the unofficial-official advanced class. It was scary for me because prior to that I had zero dancing skills, the only dance I knew was the Cha-Cha Slide. Soon enough, we were already rushing to learn Calabaceados, a dance from Baja California to perform for back-to-school night. Fortunately, Benavidez’s teachings were simple to understand, the sequences were easy to follow, and whenever I’d get lost I always had classmates to look at as reference. 

The class quickly became my favorite period not only because it was fun dancing but also because of my classmates. Everyone created such a comfortable environment and put a lot of effort into learning. “They really took the challenge of being in the advanced class and were able to really step up to the plate and come to the same level,” Benavidez said, “It was nice because the class leveled itself out with the attitudes. The students who were new were very willing to learn and the students who were returners were very willing to help them, so it made a nice balance.” There was never a dull moment in that class.

Now, this year is definitely different than last year’s class. 5th is still the advanced class, but things have clearly changed. For one, last year’s seniors graduated and started their college journeys. Their presence is greatly missed and things aren’t the same. We only have three returning students from the advanced class – Camila Mata, Alexander Lizaola, and myself. 18 students have already taken one year of Baile and only 6 are completely new. 

Compared to last year, classmates feel a lot more distant this year, but it is only a few months into the school year, so things may change with time. “Nonetheless, I think the performances will make everyone closer and we have a lot of those coming up so there are more opportunities for the bonds to be made,” Benavidez said.

Behavior has been a common issue in the class, which I was definitely not expecting at all. Since most people have already taken the Baile class they should already know the class expectations. “I’m holding standards a lot higher because I know that a lot of them are second years, so I expect them to know how this class works and I expect them to come to class and know they have to pick up material real fast,” Benavidez said. It is frustrating when they dismiss his scoldings because it shows their carelessness. 

We don’t just dance in class, we receive assignments and projects just like any other class. Wednesdays are our work days and we’re supposed to work on assignments, for example, our group choreography projects. Alexander Lizaola has noted that on the days when Benavidez is absent, the class has been taking it as an opportunity for a free period, which to me is just blatant disrespect. Lesson planning is not a simple task and Benavidez has been very verbal on what we’re expected to get done. When these things happen, the class gets lectured, yet they completely disregard anything that’s been said and continue the cycle.

Performance-wise, it’s not too bad; the whole class has already performed for back-to-school night, and a selected few performed for El Grito at Alisal, ESMS, and La Paz. So far we have learned pieces from the regions Baja California, Jalisco, and currently are working on completing Aguascalientes. Returners have expressed concerns over the class’ effort when it comes to learning. Lizaola commented that the students don’t seem too excited when dancing and their energy levels are low. Camila Mata added to this issue and acknowledged that it’s going to be harder to get performances out of people–at least for now.

On a more positive note, everyone usually starts off keeping to themselves and what’s beautiful about the Baile Folklorico class is that with time, students slowly get more comfortable with themselves and classmates. There is so much room for improvement and last year it is exactly what I experienced. Benavidez brought up my end-of-the-year talent show performance where I did a drag show skit. He described it as a cool moment that perfectly represented how the class affects people because it showed my growth where I went from being very shy to having much more confidence in myself and showing that through performances. Nobody is perfect and all of us returners still think we have much we can improve on. I’ll just have to trust the process and focus on my own individual progress while encouraging others to gain that confidence that’ll shine through our performances. There is still much more time left until graduation, so I’ll enjoy every single moment in Baile and perform with all my passion.