Meet this week’s bee-utiful campus celebrity, and Her Campus’s own, Alyssa Willey! While many of our readers spent their spring breaks in Panama City or at Myrtle Beach, this sophomore dancer from Carthage, Ill. spent hers in Nebraska with the rest of the St. Ambrose dance team. This was all for a good reason, though, because you’re now looking at a national champion. That’s right—after almost not qualifying for nationals and then being ranked 7th out of twelve teams before the competition began, SAU executed a near-perfect final routine and took the win.
“As soon as the third and second place finishers were announced, we knew we won,” Alyssa recalled. “We all started screaming and crying as they brought us our trophy. I can’t even come up with words to describe the feeling of that moment. There’s no way that I’ll ever forget it.”
Although this is Alyssa’s first time as a national champion, it definitely isn’t her first time performing in front of an audience. Alyssa’s mom put her in dance at age 2, and she fell in love with the sport right away.
“Something about performing on stage with a group of girls just makes my heart happy,” Alyssa said. “Being on the SAU Dance Team has been the best part about my dance career. Dancing next to a bunch of beautiful and talented girls who all share the same goal—to be successful—is the best feeling. When we leave it all out on the floor during a performance and are in tears afterwards—those feelings can’t be matched. I’m so thankful for the SAU dance team.”
When it comes to advice for underclassmen, Alyssa has one message: get involved in at least one club/organization. Whether it’s Dance Marathon, SAA or CAB, you will meet people that will potentially be your best friends. No matter the organization, it can become a part of you that can really make your college experience that much better. Ambrose is the perfect place to get involved!
Dying to know more about this dancing queen? Here’s just a little bit more about her.
Major/minor: Public Relations major with Marketing, Management, and Organizational Leadership minorsPlans after graduation: To get a fancy PR job in a big city—hoping for Des Moines, IADream job: The PR gal for Disney—I mean how perfect would that be? You get to promote Mickey Mouse.Favorite quote: “Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you’ll land among the stars.” I’ve always had big dreams and my parents have always told me to go for it. Even though they haven’t always worked out, I’ve had some pretty great experiences.Role models: Definitely my parents and sister. My parents have given me the world and more, and they are my number 1 fans—no matter what. My sister has been the person I look up to the most in life. She is beautiful inside and out, and all I want out of life is to be half the person she is.Random facts: 1. I once played Mrs. Potts in Beauty and the Beast and loved every second of it.2. If I could do one thing at Ambrose before I graduate, it would be to play in the pep band with my gal Kendall McKie.3. I think Amanda is really cool, and I’m so glad that I have to deal with her these next two years while we complete our PR majors.