TheCoachesDance
- UDA Coaches Leadership Award recipient
- Owner/Director of Dancer's Edge
Valerie Stead Potsos
“Being a University of Michigan dance team member is an honor and privilege. Quickly, members are humbled and reminded that earning this right to represent Michigan takes hard work, discipline and commitment. Attending the greatest university in the world while performing in the Big House and Crisler Center develops world-class, world-ready athletes who will become valuable members of society.”
Coach Bio
Valerie Stead Potsos has served as head coach of the University of Michigan dance team since 2000. She helped usher the Michigan dance team into a new era in 2012 when the squad officially became part of Michigan Athletics - a move that greatly increased the team's resources to travel, train and gain athletic and academic support. Under Stead Potsos’ guidance, the team has excelled each year and is consistently ranked nationally. In both 2014 and 2015, U-M posted top-10 finishes at UDA nationals in hip-hop and jazz.
When she is not coaching the dance team on the sidelines of U-M football and basketball games, she runs her own dance studio - one that was was recently named as one of the "Top Studios on the Move" in Dance Spirit Magazine. Prior to coaching at Michigan, she spent eight years coaching the Royal Oak Kimball Dance Company and the Royal Oak Kimball Varsity cheer and dance teams. She also served as an instructor for "Girls Empowered," a leadership company dedicated to empowering the lives of young women.
When she is not coaching the dance team on the sidelines of U-M football and basketball games, she runs her own dance studio - one that was was recently named as one of the "Top Studios on the Move" in Dance Spirit Magazine. Prior to coaching at Michigan, she spent eight years coaching the Royal Oak Kimball Dance Company and the Royal Oak Kimball Varsity cheer and dance teams. She also served as an instructor for "Girls Empowered," a leadership company dedicated to empowering the lives of young women.
Fun Fact
Coach Stead Potsos was a member of the Michigan dance team and a captain back when the squad was called the "Wolverettes."
Career Highlights
- 12 Top-10 UDA Jazz Finishes
- 7 Top-10 UDA Hip Hop Finishes
- 14th Season
Assistant Coaches
Joan Noble-Pruett
Assistant Coach
Joan Noble-Pruett started working with the Michigan dance team in 2012. She brings a wealth of experience gathered through her years working with color guard ensembles across the country. She is currently serving her 19th season with the Michigan Marching Band as the flag instructor and also directs the Michigan Winter Ensemble competition color guard of the Michigan Marching Band. With the dance team, she lends her expertise in formations, transitions and precise execution.
Noble-Pruett continues to work with numerous high school programs throughout the country and is a sought-after judge around the United States for competitions. Each summer she is a featured instructor at Central Michigan University’s drum major and color guard clinics. Prior to coaching at Michigan, Noble-Pruett was the color guard instructor for the Indiana University Marching Hundred for four years. She also taught color guard and dance with the Star of Indiana Drum and Bugle Corps and the Spirit of Atlanta.
