NINJA TRIAL CLASS ALERT
OUR TEAM
The PAC Team!
Alexis Valvis, Wendy Cassell, Victoria Valvis
Read more below!
Alexis Valvis
Alexis Valvis is the head coach at Progressive Gymnastics, where Alexis coaches kids of all ages to the team level.
Alexis has an Associates degree from Nassau Community College, a Biology degree from Binghamton University and a Masters degree in Exercise Physiology from Queens College.
She has worked in the exercise physiology field for 1-2 years at a fitness facility helping elderly physical therapy patients get back on their feet.
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For the past 12 years Alexis has played an important role at Progressive Gymnastics. She teaches parent-child classes, pre- school age children, and grade school children allowing them to explore all of the fundamentals of gymnastics in a fun and safe environment. Alexis has also started and developed three advanced program levels to challenge the gymnasts that have exceeded the recreational class level and need to be challenged more to develop their technique and strength to take on more difficult skills.
She also is the head coach of the USAIGC competition team. e team has been very successful helping to evolve strong and motivated young athletes. She, and her hardworking coaching staff, have progressed the team, taking them to State, Regional, and World Championships.
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Alexis is an all around athlete. She did gymnastics for 16 years and competed for 10 years before switching to Volleyball. She played on a club team in high school and played Division 3 for NCC earning the title 7th and 4th in the nation at the NJCAA Championships. Alexis also ran track, played soccer, and softball throughout middle school and high school. In the winter, she is an avid skier and snowboarder, making several trips out west and north with Europe as the next destination. Alexis also spends her summers traveling. Having been to 9 European countries, Australia, Mexico, and Canada, Her next sights are South American and Asia.
Wendy Cassell
Wendy Cassell has been the proud owner of Progressive Gymnastics for 40 years.
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Wendy possesses a degree in Physical Education and Early Childhood Education.
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She was an adjunct professor at LIU in Brooklyn and Queens College on the physical education department.
Wendy sought to create her vision of a place that children could go to get fit and have a great time. Now on her third location, Wendy has built an extraordinary physical fitness facility with a large variety of programs for children of all ages. Her passion is what makes Progressive
Gymnastics what it is today with her creative mornings and adventurous afternoons from tots all the way up to teens the recreational program has grown to build advanced and team programs, the Ready, Set, Grow Preschool, a dance studio, jump rope workshops, scientific whiz kids, holiday drop offs, and more.
The most popular of the programs is the Ninja Athletic Warrior Program. Boys and girls from the age of 4 years old until 13 years old are challenged and trained to be real Ninja Warriors. Wendy has invested much thought, time and effort in the program so our ninjas can enjoy the experience of a replica of the obstacle based phenomenon just
like on the TV show. With her vision for the program she has been the driving factor to make it the first and most developed Ninja Warrior program on Long Island.
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Wendy was a gymnast and cheerleader in high school and through college. She worked in the public school system in the Physical Education department for a number of years before starting her business as a gymnastics club owner. She has 2 daughters, Alexis and Victoria, that help her run the programs. She loves to travel and has been to a plethora of destinations such as Dubai, New Zealand, Australia, and several European countries. She also likes to collect unique pieces of artwork from local artists on her travels.
Victoria Valvis
Victoria Valvis is one of the recreational leaders at Progressive Gymnastics.
She manages the staff, aids in program development, and coaches.
She has an Associates degree from Nassau Community College and a Bachelor’s degree in Integrative Neuroscience from Binghamton University.
She is currently working on applying for a Physicians Assistant Program.
Victoria has worked in the medical field, shadowing doctors in the emergency room, observed surgeries in operating rooms, and was a medical scribe at various doctors office, all while pursuing her degree.
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Victoria has played an important role at Progressive Gymnastics. She has helped develop the recreational gymnastics and ninja program curriculum and also coordinates the staff schedules for classes and birthday parties. Another aspect of her responsibilities includes hiring new prospective coaches and assists in their training.
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Victoria leads a very eco-friendly life. Her goal is to live a zero-waste lifestyle and be a role model for young people who are interested in gardening, recycling, and composting.
She was an all around athlete playing volleyball and lacrosse, as well as being on the swimming and track and field teams. She also has quite the musical talent, teaching herself to play the piano and guitar. Her humor and draw stem from her struggling comedian side career. Her biggest adventure was traveling to Peru on a medical volunteer program and visiting Machu Picchu.