People often think of dance teachers as sharp-tongued and eager to point out a dancer’s infinite faults.

Dance students at City College say this stereotype is a far cry from their new teacher, Jennifer Seigle. Instead, they describe the petite brunette as sporting a perpetual smile.

“Her modern dance classes start with floor exercises to build body awareness, and then move to exercises across the floor, and then to complex combinations,” shares Ballet and Modern dance student Claudia Orona.

“She’s definitely very enthusiastic. She enjoys teaching class very much.”

Though the semester is just two weeks old, Seigle’s enthusiasm promises some positive changes for City College’s dance program and dancers.

“Arts in general have trouble being considered valid in the current educational system,” Seigle says. “We get so many cuts in our funding, and people are trying to take arts out of the K-12 schools, so it’s really important to say that this is something you can do with your life.”

Thursday night, 10 students sat in a circle on PE 113’s hardwood floors, discussing plans to restart the now-dormant Dance Club, with Seigle as its adviser. Though the club will be student-run, Seigle hopes it will attract more and more-varied students. She’s also hoping the students will bring in professional dancer to teach master dance classes.

She plans to continue working on creating a dance major at City College and hopes to have it in place within the next two years. Many students transfer to UCSB and UCLA, where the major exists. If students want to build their dance or theatre careers, having an associate’s degree can help them along, explains the Cal State Northridge and University of Colorado alumna.

The East Coast native first became involved in theater, and then progressed into dancing. She spent seven years performing professionally before beginning her directing and choreography career, and in 2004 began teaching dance at the college level.

What impresses her most about City College is the talent and open-mindedness of the students, and she describes the campus dance studio as the most beautiful space she’s ever seen.

“It looks out on the ocean, so I hope that it’s warm and inviting as a creative space,” Seigle says.

The new teacher said she believes a new degree, a resurrected club, guest dancers and a gorgeous dance floor will help the program succeed.

“I hope students will come over and explore what we have to offer, and whether they’re beginners or advanced I hope that they’ll take advantage of the fact that this is here,” she says.