Dream Team

Dawn Rodriguez

Founder

Dawn Rodriguez founded the organization after her time traveling abroad and teaching English and dance. After years of ballet training in the states, Dawn traveled overseas to teach English. In her spare time, she taught dance to non-native English speaking students, where she discovered the concept of teaching English through dance!

Ashlyn McPhillips

Executive Director

Ashlyn was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area and discovered her love for dancing at a very young age. She pursued her passion for dance all the way through college and earned her Bachelor’s of Fine Arts Degree in Dance with a minor emphasis on Nutrition & Dietetics. Ashlyn’s first huge venture after college was establishing her own dance studio in south Austin. Shortly after, she became the Director of the Austin Lady Vipers, semi-professional cheerleaders for the Austin Vipers football team. Ashlyn joined Dance Another World as an instructor and immediately fell in love with the mission and students she was working with. She is thrilled to now be Executive Director of the organization and working alongside some amazing people to make a difference in the community. Outside of dancing, you can catch Ashlyn chasing after her wildly sweet three year old, Emma.

Natalie Elorza-Welling

Creative Director

Natalie Elorza-Welling is originally from Orlando, FL and studied Wildlife Ecology and Conservation at the University of Florida. After completing her degree she relocated to Austin, TX to serve two years teaching environmental education to underprivileged youth through AmeriCorps program. Upon completion of the program she became determined to become a part of the Dance Another World mission which serves the same community of youth. She has been passionate about studying dance for going on 20 years and continues to share this passion with her students. She is currently studying graphic design and hopes to continue pursuing a path that incorporates her love for art, nature, and empowering others.

Laurie Winfield

Board President

Laurie Winfield was born in Texas, but her father’s job took her family abroad to Libya and Singapore when she was nine. Early exposure to different cultures and languages influenced her to decision to get a Master’s in TEFL at the University of Texas, focusing on adult second language acquisition. Her early career led her to teaching/training  jobs in Japan, Korea, California, and Oregon. She later shifted her career to writing and management in the software industry. She is now Project Manager/Writer at Experian Consumer Services, working with identity protection software. She has served as Board Vice President of the Japan Society of Austin, Board President of English at Work and has volunteered in many international and immigrant-focused organizations in the Austin area.

Veronica Pauda

Board Secretary

My name is Veronica A. Pauda and I have been working with students since 2003. I started as an Americorps volunteer and slowly moved on to teaching 4th and 5th graders at Emerson Elementary in Amarillo, TX. I was promoted to Afterschool Site Coordinator in 2008 and remained at Emerson until my move to Austin in 2010.  I was the Site Coordinator for TA Brown Elementary for 6.5 years and loved every minute of it. I currently work as the District Director for Representative Ina Minjarez.  My passion is education: specifically literacy, math, and fine arts.  I have been married to my husband, Joshua F. Pauda, for two years and he too works in education.  I am very fortunate to be part of Dance Another World and hope to be able to impact the world of education even if it is in a small way!

Chonie Bradley

Board Treasurer

Chonie Bradley is passionate about dance and teaching others about finance. She works in a fast-growth startup in Denver, CO as a Finance Director and grew up dancing ballet and drill team. She serves as the Dance Another World Treasurer and is excited to see how many community members of Austin and beyond can be impacted or contribute to the growth of this amazing organization.