PORT ORANGE, Fla. — Amanda Aubry is a professionally trained dancer who took a teaching position to supplement her performing career only to find her true passion was teaching students dance in the classroom. It is a career she has been in for nearly 18 years now.

Aubry likes to keep her students at their Port Orange High School on their toes. On a recent visit to the school, Spectrum News 13 watched her work with members of the Atlantic High School Nautica Dance Company.

“I want them to feel able to do anything in here without judgement. Judgement free zone. This is home. This is where they can explore movement however they want,” she says.

Aubry remembers when she was a focused student, saying she danced a lot and took band, among other activities.

She is a very focused teacher now, having spent about 18 years in the teaching career. Fifteen of those years she has spent at Atlantic High School.

“Sometimes teaching can be really hard. It’s not always sunshine and flowers all the time,” she says.

But Aubry says crossing paths with her former students and hearing their positive reflections on their time at the school makes all the difference.

“Oh. It’s the best feeling ever. Like just knowing that you made an impact on someone’s life is — it just makes me feel like what I do is worth it,” she said.

She said those magical moments always happen at the right time, too. “It’s like, well, I have to keep doing this because I’m making a difference. There’s kids out there that really appreciate it.”