History

The founder of the O’Connor School of Irish Dancing, Bella Yerina, came to the United States in 1960 from Waterford, Ireland where she danced with the Troy School of Irish Dance.  She founded the O’Connor School in San Francisco, California in 1978.  In 1980 Bella moved to Thousand Oaks and has been teaching throughout southern California ever since.  Starting in 2011 Joell Poppen, one of Bella’s two daughter took up teaching for the school with guidance from Bella.

Throughout the years Bella and Joel have had numerous teams and individuals compete at the regional, national and world level.  The school emphasizes the joy of Irish dance and sportsmanship through competition and makes that a priority.  

Our Mission

To ensure a fun learning environment that will assist our students to reach their full potential and to celebrate the joy of dancing and competition.