Clarke Central High School physical education department teacher Evan Adams dances in the CCHS wrestling room on Jan. 22. Evans reintroduced the Aerobic Dance course at CCHS at the start of the 2025-26 school year after taking similar classes hosted by a local dance organization. “(The Dancefx Athens class) turned into me joining (a performance group). I danced on (it) for five or six years, and loved it. We were working out, but (also) having fun. I only stopped because I didn’t have enough time,” Adams said. “I know that (CCHS physical education department chair) Kasi Carvell used to teach Aerobic Dance, and in my head, I was like, ‘That’s got to be mine.’” Photo by Adah Hamman
The Aerobic Dance course at CCHS was reintroduced at the beginning of the 2025-26 spring semester after a two-year hiatus by CCHS physical education department teacher Evan Adams.
Music pulses through the Clarke Central High School wrestling room, and the sound of shoes squeaking against a rubber mat fills the space. CCHS physical education department teacher Evan Adams stands at the front of the room, clapping and encouraging students as a workout video plays in the background.
At the start of the 2025-26 spring semester, Adams reintroduced the Aerobic Dance class at CCHS, which is meant to improve students’ personal fitness.
“As an assignment, I had (my students) pick out warm-ups, workouts and cool-downs. So, I made a list of everything (they said), and we pick (what we do in class) from that. It could be that we could focus on arms, glutes or cardio,” Adams said. “After we do our workout for the day, they fill in their weekly journal and tell me how they felt during the exercise.”
According to Adams, she wanted to teach the class after learning it had been discontinued after the 2022-2023 school year due to low enrollment.
“I talked to (CCHS Associate Principal Dr. Summer Smith) about (the class), and she was like, ‘If you get me names and we can make a class, we’ll support you,’” Adams said. “I emailed all of the female athletes that I knew, and came up with a list of girls that wanted to do it, and that’s why we have a class today.”
“I hope (the class) makes people feel good in their own skin and feel comfortable working out, even if they aren’t in their peak form.”
— Evan Adams,
CCHS physical education department teacher
CCHS sophomore Arely Partida-Avila enrolled in the Aerobic Dance class after hearing about it from a friend.
“I like being active (and) moving around. Also, (the class) sounded fun because I like dancing,” Partida-Avila said. “(I feel better after the class because) I don’t have the time to go to the gym or anything, and this gets me sore.”
In the future, Adams hopes that the class will grow in enrollment, providing more students with an opportunity to improve their self-confidence.
“I hope (the class) makes people feel good in their own skin and feel comfortable working out, even if they aren’t in their peak form. When I’m dancing, I don’t think about how hard I’m breathing. I don’t think about what I look like. I’m just having a blast,” Adams said. “That’s what I’m hoping I can give to the students.”
