You’ve already met two of our Gala Hosts, Gary Bridges and Javon Nobles, and now we’d like to introduce our third host: Jade Ayala!

Jade, along with Javon, is a senior at Creative Arts Morgan Village Academy in Camden, NJ, and studies at Settlement with faculty member Sharon Neff. Though musical theater is her main focus, Jade loves performing and has aspirations for a multi-faceted professional career in vocal and studio music, theatre and film acting, and dance. Her credits already include productions of West Side Story, Once on This Island, and School Daze as well the gospel choir Omar Frederick & Devotion. While not thinking about the stage and screen, Jade finds joy in crocheting, painting, drawing, and roller skating, not to mention continuing her athletic career in softball and martial arts.

Her lessons with Sharon Neff began just before the pandemic, but her weekly online lessons have made sure the learning never stopped. Next year, Jade is headed to Kean University where she will continue to grow as an artist, but she will never forget where her artistic journey began. “Before Settlement, I knew what I needed, but I didn’t know how to get there. Now that I have Settlement, my journey is on the right path!”