Ayana began her ballet training in her hometown of California, MD at Ballet Caliente Classical School of Dance. After high school she continued her training at Goucher College as a Dance major with a concentration in Arts Administration and a minor in Business Management, graduating summa cum laude and winning the Friends of Goucher Dance Prize for Outstanding Achievement in the Major. While in college, she performed with Ballet Ashani and Charm City Ballet, as well as in works choreographed by students, faculty, and guest artists with the Goucher Repertory Dance Ensemble. Ayana spent summers training with the Royal Danish Ballet School, the American Ballet Theatre, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School, Dance Theatre of Harlem, The Washington School of Ballet, CityDance Conservatory, Goucher College, and Dance Base U.K., attending several of these programs on scholarship. This is Ayana's first season as a Trainee with Charlottesville Ballet.