Taylor Young is only 17, but she has been dancing since the age of 3. &uot;I took a year off in first grade,&uot; Young admits as she calculates the years in her head.

It must have paid off. Following graduation from Trinity Episcopal School in the spring, Young plans to attend the prestigious Nutmeg Conservatory of the Arts in Kentucky as part of the post-graduate ballet program. After taking part in the conservatory’s international program over the summer, the dance faculty pleaded with Young to stay and finish her senior year at Nutmeg. &uot;It was a tough decision,&uot; Young said. &uot;Because Trinity is very important to me and all my friends were here.&uot;

While she harbors no regrets, Young said she still thinks about her choice. Her instructors told her, had she stayed, she would have easily been accepted to a four-year dance program.

&uot;I know I will have to work harder to catch up,&uot; she said.

But, to look at Young’s schedule, it’s hard to imagine a more dedicated teenager.

Every day, Young leaves campus and heads for the Natchez Ballet Academy where she helps teach the toddler classes before beginning her own workout.

Even her summers are devoted to studies at the American Ballet Theatre satellite program at the University of Alabama.

&uot;It’s definitely taught me to be self-disciplined,&uot; Young said.

Young said she recognizes the uncertainties that come with pursuing a career in dance, but the encouragement of her parents — Jim and Gwen Young — ballet instructors and Trinity classmates have inspired her to follow her dream.

Still, Young said she plans to make time for a liberal arts education somewhere down the road — a plan her mother agrees with. &uot;Our deal is I have to have a college degree before my 10-year reunion,&uot; she said, laughing.

Young said she hopes to one day become an instructor at a university dance program where she can pass on her love of dance to others.