Although she didn’t consider a career in dance until a few years ago, Jennifer Johnson isn’t wasting any time setting her goals in motion.

Today Johnson is headed to New York to participate in a seven-week Summer Intensive Program presented by the School of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.

“I’m really nervous,” said Johnson, 18, a dance performance and choreography major at the University of Southern Mississippi. “The dancers at the audition I went to were really good, and there will be others from other locations. But I’m also excited.”

In December, Johnson traveled to Houston, Texas, where she was among 300 dancers who auditioned for the summer workshop.

“We did a ballet class, and from there they made cuts,” she said. “And if you made that round of cuts, you did a modern (dance) class. From that, they selected those who would attend the summer workshop.”

Johnson not only was selected for the workshop, but also was accepted for two independent study programs — a one-year and three-year.

She decided to attend the summer program, with plans to transfer to the Ailey/Fordham (University) BFA Program (a partnership between the two institutions that offers a bachelor of fine arts degree in dance.)

The summer program begins Monday and, just as the name implies, will be highly intensive — students will dance eight to 10 hours a day, five days a week.

“We’re required to take ballet and modern classes, and then we have a choice of classes such as jazz, West African dance, pointe, tap,” Johnson said. “I know I want to take West African dance and jazz, but I’m not sure of what other classes I want to take.”

At the end of the workshop, students will have the opportunity to audition to perform.

“I’m really looking forward to that,” she said.

Dancing since the age of 3, Johnson has studied at the Pat Gray Dance Academy for most of her dance career. Starting with jazz, she has developed a passion for ballet.

The daughter of John and Pranati Johnson, Johnson said she would like to perform with the Ailey Dance Theater as well as several other companies. She eventually would like to open a dance studio, as well as offer a program for underprivileged kids.

“I want to get dance more out there,” she said. “A lot of people don’t understand it, haven’t tried it or think it’s just something for certain people. I want to make dance more available to other people.”