Abbigail B.
High School Student - Maine Connections Academy
Abbigail is a high school student at Maine Connections Academy (MCA). She lives with her family in Orrington, Maine. Abbigail plans to pursue a career in professional dancing. She is happy that attending MCA has allowed her to arrange her schooling around her interests. Learn more about Abbigail’s story below:
Abbigail started with MCA as an eighth grader. Her favorite subject is physics, and she applies her physics lessons daily to her ballet moves—force, torque, momentum and centrifugal force all contribute to the outcome of her ballet turns.
The flexibility of an online school has given Abbigail the freedom to attend ballet auditions, even as far as New York City. She can structure her school day to accommodate auditions, practices, and rehearsals. Abbigail has been dancing since the age of four, but developed a true connection with ballet when she began training under her current teacher, Ivy Forrest, who is a former professional dancer.
MCA's flexible schedule means I don't have to choose between my education and chasing my dreams.
— Abbigail
Abbigail has performed in the Nutcracker several times in Maine as well as in the Chautauqua Institution in New York. Each summer, she attends an intensive ballet-training program at the renowned Suzanne Farrell Cedar Island Program in New York, where only ten dancers throughout the country are chosen. Abbigail also enjoys a playing golf with her father at the Bangor Municipal Golf Course.
In the future, Abbigail would like to dance professionally for a reputable dance company. After that, she’ll focus on becoming a ballet instructor or a doctor. Until then, she continues to perform well academically by investing in the hard work it takes to achieve top grades in all of her classes. With her continued drive, energy and ambition, she is set to dance her way to a successful future.;