By ALIN HETT
Hays Post
At just 10 years old, Hays dancer Kennedy Bartling has already learned what it feels like to fall short of a goal, and what can happen when she decides to try again.
Two years ago, Kennedy performed a solo at nationals but did not place. She remembers being disappointed, but instead of allowing the result to discourage her, she decided something needed to change.
“I didn't place, and then I was really bummed about that,” Kennedy said. “So I tried working harder, persevering through everything, and then I got that.”
The work paid off.
Kennedy returned the following season and took first place at three regional competitions before advancing to the Parade of Champions at the Talent On Parade National Competition in Branson, Missouri, where she finished fourth.
For Kennedy, the difference between those two seasons was not difficult to explain.
“Two years ago, I was just messing around,” Kennedy said. “I wanted to get first in everything. I didn't really try hard, and then now I'm really up for trying and doing everything.”
Growing up through dance
Kennedy began dancing when she was around 3 or 4 years old, spending two years in a recreation program before moving directly into competitive dance. This fall will mark her sixth year on the competition team.
She now competes through Styles Dance Centre in Hays, where her solo, “Wonderboom,” was choreographed by studio owner Alyssa Dechant.
Competition is part of what keeps Kennedy coming back. She enjoys being challenged and pushing herself to improve each season, but dance has also provided memories with her studio and family, friendships with dancers from across the country and opportunities to learn from instructors at nationals and during the offseason.
Her favorite styles are open and jazz. Kennedy has a simple way of describing jazz.
“Really sassy,” she said.
Open, meanwhile, gives her more freedom to incorporate acrobatics and tumbling alongside other elements of dance.
“Acro and tumbling fit in with it more than, say, other ones,” Kennedy said.
Those skills are something she hopes to showcase even more during her next competition season.
At the time of the interview, choreography for her next solo had not yet been completed, but Kennedy already knew she wanted something more difficult than the routine she performed last season.
“I'm hoping it's a lot more technical because last year I could do all of it,” Kennedy said. “I'm hoping that it's more acro and tumbling and stuff, so I can place higher.”
Ultimately, Kennedy has her eyes on becoming a grand champion.
At Talent On Parade Nationals, the highest-scoring soloists in their respective age divisions advance to the Parade of Champions and perform their solos again for an opportunity to earn the grand champion title.
Kennedy earned her spot in the Parade of Champions during her most recent trip to Branson and received her first Elite Double Diamond, the highest adjudication a routine can earn at the competition. The honor is reserved for near-flawless performances, scoring between 97.5 and 100 points.
She ultimately placed fourth at Nationals.
The national performance capped a season that also included first-place finishes at three regional competitions.
At the VIP Dance Competition in Kansas City, Missouri, Kennedy took first place and was named an Idol Soloist, an honor awarded to standout, high-scoring soloists at regional events.
She also performed “Wonderboom” at the Believe National Dance Competition regional event in Wichita.
For Kennedy's family, however, the season meant more than the awards she carried home.
When mom is also coach
Dance is not something Kennedy experiences alone.Her mother, Courtney Bartling, is the Fort Hays State University Head Cheerleading and Mascot Coach, giving Kennedy someone at home who understands both the technical demands of what she is doing and the work required to improve.
It also creates an unusual mother-daughter relationship.
There are times when Kennedy has to determine whether the person giving her instructions is Mom or Coach, while Courtney has had to learn how to navigate the same line from the other side.
The two admit it has not always been easy. Sometimes, Kennedy’s father would offer a reminder.
“Your mom's not a college cheer coach for nothing,” Kennedy recalled her father saying.
Working through those moments, Courtney said, has ultimately strengthened their relationship.
"I think it just helps the relationship grow more when you have this difficult path,” Courtney said. “But then, you know, even through that you kind of push through, persevere and then we both learn together.”
Sometimes that means looking up new tricks together or figuring out different ways Kennedy can move her body to accomplish a skill. Courtney has also made sure her daughter learns from other instructors rather than always being coached by her mother.
When Kennedy was younger, that included using programs at the Hays Recreation Commission for tumbling.
“I think it's good for kids to have different instructors,” Courtney said.
Her mother's connection to FHSU has also given Kennedy opportunities to learn alongside college athletes.
While preparing to perform a basket toss as part of a large dance performance, Kennedy practiced with Courtney's FHSU team because ceiling restrictions at the dance studio made practicing the skill difficult.
Sometimes practice even moved outside, where there was no ceiling to worry about.
Kennedy has also performed during FHSU basketball halftime events.
One of her favorites involved a large dance line of more than 100 performers and a theme centered around Michael Jackson.
“I was really excited for the big line last year because it was Michael Jackson,” Kennedy said. “There were five Michael Jacksons, and I was one of them.”
Those experiences have Kennedy considering whether she might eventually follow her mother into cheer.
“I'm not sure right now,” Kennedy said. “I want to be a professional dancer, but I also want to try to cheer.”
Life outside the studio
Kennedy is a fifth grader at Roosevelt Elementary School and is involved in student council.
Her interest in becoming involved at school began in third grade, when she attended Lincoln Elementary School. After learning about classroom elections, Kennedy ran for class president and won.
She helped with classroom projects, including creating an art wall and assisting her teacher. That year would also be her last at Lincoln before the school closed.
The move to Roosevelt for fourth grade brought a significant adjustment. Kennedy said her classes at Lincoln generally had around 17 or 18 students. At Roosevelt, that increased to around 25 or 26. Larger student population also faced a difficulty with being bullied.
“I started seeing the counselor to help me process different aspects of a larger school” Kennedy said. “In the end, whether it’s school or sports, I want others to know the path isn’t always easy, but to persevere through it and help the next person.”
By the end of fourth grade, she had been selected for student council.
Now in fifth grade, she is looking forward to becoming more involved in student council activities while continuing a demanding dance schedule. Kennedy remembers days when she would leave school and have to be at the dance studio shortly afterward.
“Sometimes we have dance at 3:40,” Kennedy said. “I had to go home, grab all my stuff, and get into the car and then go there.”
Despite the schedule, Kennedy's athletic interests are not limited to dance. She also enjoys playing soccer and volleyball.
More than trophies
Kennedy's experiences in dance and school have also connected her with an Athlete of the Year competition benefiting the Why Not You Foundation.
During the interview, Kennedy said she had returned to first place in voting after previously falling to second. Each dollar raised counts as a vote in the competition, with proceeds supporting the foundation.
Kennedy said the organization's message centers on “persevering through stuff and being a leader towards what your dreams are and what you want to become.”
Courtney said the message particularly resonated with her daughter after Kennedy listened to Russell Wilson discuss overcoming difficult circumstances and continuing to pursue goals.
To view Kennedy’s Youth Athlete of the Year page, click here
Kennedy recognized pieces of herself in that message, both in the studio and at school. It also fits with something her family wants to remain important as Kennedy earns more awards: staying humble.
The trophies show how far she has come, but they do not erase where the journey started. A year before reaching the Parade of Champions, Kennedy left nationals without placing in the top 10. Then she returned to work.
Three regional victories followed.
So did her first Elite Double Diamond, a place in the Parade of Champions and, eventually, a fourth-place national finish.
Kennedy still wants more.
Her next solo will bring new choreography, new skills to learn and another opportunity to test herself against dancers from across the country.
For now, the Hays fifth grader who once left nationals disappointed is preparing to go back with a different goal.
This time, she wants the top spot.