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Contact: Alexis Rocker, Foundation President, (859)-912-2649 Email: alexis.rocker@gmail.com The Betsye Kay Finch Performing Arts Foundation has awarded its 2026 scholarship of $4,000 to dancer and choreographer Kyria McAllister, 17, of Lakeland. Kyria began dancing at age 3. Since then, she has danced in numerous productions including The Lion King and The Sound of Music, Jr. at Harrison School for the Arts, and The Crystal Nutcracker, at Crystal’s World of Dance, in Lakeland, where she won the 2025 Dancer of the Year award for her outstanding “work ethic, dedication and unmatched passion for dance.” This past December, she co-choreographed and performed in the Harrison School’s Winter Dance Concert. For Kyria, dance has been her “outlet”, a place to “express my emotions, tell my story and find peace.” Kyria’s repertoire includes hip hop, tap, contemporary, jazz, pointe, classical ballet and modern dance. She has trained at national dance programs including Joy of Movement, Washington, DC; Steps on Broadway, NYC; Alvin Ailey Extension, NYC; the Joffrey Ballet, Chicago, and the Debbie Allen Dance Academy, Los Angeles. She is the daughter of Jacquita and Kent McAllister of Lakeland. Kyria will pursue a Bachelor’s of Fine Arts in Dance at Kennesaw State University in Kennesaw, Georgia. In addition to performing on stage, she plans to start a dance school to introduce underserved students to “the magic and inspiration of dance.” Photo Credit: Robin Phillips
Contact: Alexis Rocker, Foundation President, (859)-912-2649
Email: alexis.rocker@gmail.com
The Betsye Kay Finch Performing Arts Foundation has awarded its 2026 scholarship of $4,000 to dancer and choreographer Kyria McAllister, 17, of Lakeland. Kyria began dancing at age 3. Since then, she has danced in numerous productions including The Lion King and The Sound of Music, Jr. at Harrison School for the Arts, and The Crystal Nutcracker, at Crystal’s World of Dance, in Lakeland, where she won the 2025 Dancer of the Year award for her outstanding “work ethic, dedication and unmatched passion for dance.” This past December, she co-choreographed and performed in the Harrison School’s Winter Dance Concert. For Kyria, dance has been her “outlet”, a place to “express my emotions, tell my story and find peace.”
Kyria’s repertoire includes hip hop, tap, contemporary, jazz, pointe, classical ballet and modern dance. She has trained at national dance programs including Joy of Movement, Washington, DC; Steps on Broadway, NYC; Alvin Ailey Extension, NYC; the Joffrey Ballet, Chicago, and the Debbie Allen Dance Academy, Los Angeles. She is the daughter of Jacquita and Kent McAllister of Lakeland.
Kyria will pursue a Bachelor’s of Fine Arts in Dance at Kennesaw State University in Kennesaw, Georgia. In addition to performing on stage, she plans to start a dance school to introduce underserved students to “the magic and inspiration of dance.”
Photo Credit: Robin Phillips