Outspoken Dance Company founder Jasmine Finnell says program is growing, invites Pasadena families to sign up

Jasmine Finnell, founder and director of Outspoken Dance Company, described the Pasadena nonprofit’s growth since 2015 and invited families to enroll as the group adds a new program expected to increase summer enrollment to roughly 35–40 children.

The company began at the Boys and Girls Club in Pasadena, Finnell said, and entered its first competition in 2018. "We've actually been around since 2015," she said, adding that the group persisted "right through the fires, through COVID" to keep students dancing and engaged.

Finnell provided enrollment context: the company started with about 10 children, usually maintained a level near 15, and had grown to about 25 this year. She said the planned new program should boost numbers by summer. "By summer, we should have a good 35 to 40 because we're bringing on a new program," Finnell said, framing the expansion as a step toward broader community access.

Describing the space she aims to create, Finnell said she wants a family-based, welcoming environment "that they can come here, dance, be themselves" regardless of personal challenges. She explained the group name came from a competition rule: organizers could not use the Boys and Girls Club name at competitions, so the team chose Outspoken Dance Company to emphasize being "outspoken through movement."

Finnell emphasized local ties, saying Pasadena and nearby Altadena are strong communities that helped the group survive difficult periods; she noted her childhood home in Altadena was "almost gone" during those events. She encouraged interested families to sign up and to contact the company by phone at 626-244-7323 or via the group's Facebook and Instagram pages, which she said have registration information available now.

The remarks are drawn from the provided transcript and do not identify a formal meeting body or forum; the article attributes claims and numbers to Finnell as she presented them in the transcript.