$2.8 Million in College Scholarships Awarded to Young Dancers

Following a dazzling opening number featuring Broadway stars & hundreds of young dancers from across the country, Costa Rica & Canada, Joe Lanteri Executive Director of the NYC Dance Alliance Foundation got to the real "meat" of the Closing Evening Gala at the Sheraton New York, the announcement of the college and university scholarship winners By the end of the segment, a mind boggling total of $2.8 Million in scholarships were awarded to the most promising young dancers.

Going into this year's Convention, Lanteri had vowed to double the $500,000 given last year and to crack the $1 Million mark. Thanks to the perseverance of his team, faculty and Lanteri himself and the extraordinary efforts of several of the participating colleges and the NYC Dance Alliance Foundation, the figure moved up to the amazing total of $2.8 Million by the middle of this week. In making the announcements, Lanteri -termed the evening "a life-changing night for all".

As announcements were read, the cheers became deafening and many grateful parents wept openly at the largesse of the 17 year old organization in helping to make their children's dream realities. NYC Dance Alliance Foundation's mission of empowering the next generation of professional dancers by advocating education and offering scholarships for secondary and college training was never more fully realized than on the stage of the Grand Ballroom at the Sheraton last night.

The Closing Night Gala of the 17th Annual NYC Dance Alliance Foundation was an over the top, not to be missed Finale featuring America's most talented young dancers and Broadway stars - many of whom are NYCDA alumni.