Meet Jacqueline Santos

Jacqueline Santos aka Jackie was born and raised in Brampton, a small town in Ontario, Canada.  She moved to Houston Texas and later graduated from Prairie View College of Nursing in 2006. Jackie works as a Registered Nurse at The Methodist Hospital in the Texas Medical Center.

Her Pole Journey

Jackie’s life was focused on her desire to make a difference by helping people from the hospital bedside. That was until she stepped into the doors of S Factor Houston in 2009 for her very first pole lesson.  She wouldn’t know it at the time but pole dancing would forever change her life.  She immediately fell in love with the pole.  Over time, pole dancing helped her lose weight, gain flexibility, and increase her core and upper body strength, and most importantly, gain a renewed confidence and an improved self-esteem. She realized that her passion to help people would head in a new direction of preventative health and fitness. The joy she experienced on her pole journey was destined to be shared so others could experience a similar journey.

After a year, the student became the teacher. The next chapter in Jackie's journey landed her in an instructor position at PoleLaTeaz Houston. The growth of her students validates and inspires her devotion to educate others. Her teaching focus sharpened after enduring her own injuries and observing those sustained by students who were hungry to attempt skills that their bodies weren't ready to master. Jackie's dedication to teaching pole in a safe progressive manner while stressing the importance of injury prevention through strengthening and proper pole technique has established her as a well loved and respected pole educator.

"The best teachers in life are those who continue to remain students"

Continuing education is very important in her journey, as it keeps her dance skills sharp and her teaching material fresh. Jackie enjoys traveling the world to learn from the very best in the pole industry.  In addition, she also loves seeking out different forms of fitness, including ballet, modern dance and yoga, and doing so has aided in developing her signature style of flowing sensuality and sultry movement.  Over time, her teaching focus has incorporated key pole artistry skills into her classes: showmanship and musicality.  This allows her students to flourish into well rounded dancers and it allows their bodies the time it needs to grow and strengthen in a safe manner.

Taking the Stage

2011 brought on a successful competitive pole year for Jackie. Her competition successes began in June with the awarding of three titles in the Miss Texas Pole Dance Competition: Professional Division 1st Runner Up, Miss Technique and Miss Echo (Best Stage Performance). In September of 2011, she clenched the title of Miss Sexy in the Miss Texas Pole Star Competition. A month later, she was recruited into Houston's All Star Performance Squad: Team Study Abroad.

Although only halfway into 2012, it has been an exciting first half as Jackie was cast as a featured soloist in Kelly Yvonne’s Girl Next Door: Texas Premiere. Her performance to ‘Kissing You’ received rave reviews and will be featured in the July showing of Girl Next Door: Hollywood. This piece also rewarded her with an Excellence in Community Service award at the 2012 North Texas Philippine Republic Day Celebration.

And Beyond...

Although the future remains to be told, Jackie strives to one day compete on the United States Pole Dance Federation stage, become a certified yoga instructor, and ultimately, open her own fitness studio to inspire both men and women to lead healthy lifestyles through preventative health and wellness.

Be sure to check out her performance video below:

Our other recent inspiration blog posts: Pole & Bikram Yoga