Our Team!

An alum of the Marjorie Jones Schools, received her BFA in Dance Performance and Dance Education from The Ohio State University in 1999.  She is a member of Dance Masters of America and currently serves as 1st Vice President and a board member for Ohio Dance Masters.  Stephanie has been teaching and choreographing in the Columbus area for the past 29 years.  She has received additional certification from the Nan Giordano Certification Program and Cheerleading of America.  

Received her BFA in Dance, with a focus on Choreography from The Ohio State University in 2000.  She has taught both in Miami, Florida and Columbus area for the past 22 years.  A member of Dance Masters of America, she currently serves as a board member for Ohio Dance Masters.  She is excited to begin her 21st year teaching for Marjorie Jones.

Trained at Balletmet and Columbus Dance Theater. She had many opportunities to perform classical roles throughout Ohio and the unique experience of performing with Opera Columbus in various operas. She studied at schools throughout North America including Interlochen Center for the Arts, Virginia Schools for the Arts, National Ballet of Canada and Pittsburgh Youth Ballet. She was invited to perform professionally with Canadian Pacific Ballet, but stayed in Columbus to dance professionally for two seasons with Columbus Dance Theater. Kylie expanded her studies in dance at The Ohio State University where she received her BFA in Dance with a focus on history and cultural studies. She is excited to begin her 13th year teaching at Marjorie Jones. 

Began her training at the age of 5 from Kathi's Dance and Gym Center in Youngstown, Ohio.  She later received her BFA in Dance Performance from Kent State University in 2017.  Upon graduation, Sarah moved to Columbus to pursue teaching and share her love of dance with her students; she is excited to begin her 6th year of teaching at Marjorie Jones. 

 Meghan Colligan is originally from Saugerties, New York, where she began her dance training at Saugerties Ballet Center. Meghan spent two summers attending the New York State Summer School of the Arts under the direction of Daniel Ulbricht, and attended other summer programs at BalletMet and the Rock School for Dance Education. She graduated from Butler University in May 2024 with a BFA in Dance Performance and a minor in Creative Media and Entertainment. While at Butler, Meghan performed soloist roles in original contemporary works by David Ingram and Derek Reid, along with performing in classical ballets including the Nutcracker and Cinderella. She also had the pleasure of creating and debuting several original pieces of choreography. Meghan is very excited to be dancing her first season with Columbus Dance Theatre. Meghan is joining us for her 1st year at Marjorie Jones.

Elyse Dakin is from Columbus, Ohio where she grew up dancing at Marjorie Jones Schools. She went on to pursue her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance from The Ohio State University, and has trained with world-renowned instructors at Jazz Dance World Congress, Broadway Dance Center, and Steps on Broadway. Elyse began teaching in 2013, and after completing her BFA in 2017, she has continued to teach and choreograph throughout Ohio, Chicago, and Massachusetts. In 2018, she attended the National Dance Institute of New Mexico’s Teaching Excellence workshop and worked with a local Columbus non-profit to bring dance, music, and performance to public school children. Elyse moved to Chicago in 2019 where she danced on scholarship with Hubbard Street’s Lou Conte Dance Studio. Elyse is member of Dance Masters of America, Ohio Dance Masters Chapter 16. 

Comes to us from Toledo, Ohio where she grew up dancing at the age of 2 under the direction of Brenda Paulsen with Darly Jervis Dance Studio.  At age 5, she was part of the prestigious and award-winning High Voltage Dance Company; which performed in the community for charities and local events along with competing at a regional and national level.  Stephanie had the opportunity to train with Al Gilbert in her youth and can be seen in his graded tap technique videos.  Stephanie attended The Ohio State University and was a member of the OSU Dance Team from 2007-2011.  This will be her 17th year teaching and choreographing for Marjorie Jones and she is a current member of Ohio Dance Masters and Dance Masters of America.

 Grew up dancing at Vicki Jo Dance Studio in Miamisburg, Ohio, where she trained and competed in various styles of dance. She attended Bowling Green State University where she received her Bachelor in Journalism and Public Relations in 2018.  Becca was on the BGSU dance team all four years of college, performing at football and basketball games, as well as competing at the Universal Dance Association (UDA) college nationals representing the University. Post-grad, she moved to Columbus and is currently working at PNC on the corporate marketing team. She is a certified dance competition judge for UDA and Stage One and is excited to share her passion and love of dance at Marjorie Jones.  Becca is joining us for her 3rd year of teaching.

  Alli Hile grew up in Columbus, Ohio. She started dancing at Marjorie Jones when she was 3 years old and started competing when she was 8. She danced all the way till she graduated high school and even some in college, at the University of Dayton! Alli was a member of the University of Dayton Dance Ensemble for a semester and a member of Life Itself Dance during her junior and senior years! She studied Early Childhood Education at UD and she is now teaching first grade! Alli is excited to begin her 2nd year teaching at Marjorie Jones!  

 Grew up dancing at Marjorie Jones Schools since the age of 3 and started competing at age 9.  She graduated in the Spring of 2019 with her degree in Criminology/Criminal Justice from The Ohio State University. While at OSU, Emily was part of a dance team for which she choreographed, performed, and competed. She then went on to earn her Masters in Social Work from OSU in 2022 and is now a licensed social worker. She currently works as a mental health therapist in Columbus City Schools for Nationwide Children’s Hospital. Emily is excited to begin her 8th year teaching at Marjorie Jones and 7th year choreographing for MJCT. 

Born in Windber, PA – Josh started his dance training at the age of fourteen. He had the pleasure of performing with Thodos Dance Chicago, Chicago Repertory Ballet, Pursuit Productions, Jaxon Movement Arts, Jessica Miller Tomlinson, and The Pillow Project. Brought up in a small town, he is thankful for the numerous inspiring mentors and creative artists that guided his pursuits as a dancer, choreographer, and person. Josh’s choreographic work exists in conceptual frameworks, and his choreography has been toured internationally and presented nationally by emerging contemporary dance companies, ballet companies, and universities. Josh was nominated for a Princess Grace Choreography Fellowship by The Big Muddy Dance Company for which he eventually created “Lyra” through the support of the Princess Grace Foundation. Some of his choreographic adventures include a longstanding relationship and building of a  community with organizations like: Ballet Austin II, The Big Muddy Dance Company, Collage Dance Collective, DanceWorks Chicago, Eisenhower Dance, Houston Contemporary, and Santa Barbara Dance Theater. Most recently, Josh founded a new platform for contemporary dance, WhirlWind Dance. He is based out of Columbus, Ohio, and hopes to inspire movers of all ages to live and dream boldly.  (BA, Point Park University, MFA, The Ohio State University)

 Lauren Egle grew up dancing at Marjorie Jones School of Dance in Columbus, Ohio, where she fell in love with competitive dance. She later attended the Ohio State University where she studied nursing and was a member of the Ohio State Club Dance Team. During her time in college, Lauren attended Broadway Dance Center’s Professional Semester in New York City, where she studied with the industry’s top choreographers in jazz, hip hop, theatre dance, and more. After graduating from college, Lauren was offered the role of coach of the Ohio State Club Dance Team. Throughout the past six years, she has led the team to impressive national rankings at NDA College Nationals in Daytona Beach, Florida. She continues to shape the program into a close-knit community of members and alumni who are able to unite over the collegiate dance experience. She currently resides in Columbus and spends time choreographing and teaching dance throughout the state of Ohio.

 Is a Pre-K Special Education resource teacher overseeing 50+ teachers currently residing in Florida.  Katie has coached gymnastics since 1994 from pre-school age to level 10 competitive gymnastics.  She has developed a passion for helping dancers incorporate acro skills into dance. Katie earned her undergraduate degree from Ohio University and her Master(s) degrees from The Ohio State University in  Educational Administration. Katie is a current member of Ohio Dance Masters and Dance Masters of America. 

 Elissa began dancing at the age of six at Marjorie Jones Schools, Inc. in Columbus, Ohio. She studied ballet, tap, jazz, pointe, and modern techniques and competed in various dance competitions for 11 years. After high school, Elissa continued her dance training at Ohio State where she studied contemporary and ballet techniques under various artists, with a focus on dance education. During her years at Ohio State, Elissa spent her time as a dance teacher and choreographer for Marjorie Jones Schools, Inc., and went on to receive her DPT from Ohio State in 2019. Elissa now resides in Mentor, Ohio working as a physical therapist and continues to utilize her eye for movement both in the dance studio and in the clinic. In her free time, Elissa loves to spend time exploring Cleveland with her husband and playing constant fetch with her 2 dogs. Elissa is currently a member of Ohio Dance Masters and Dance Masters of America. She is so excited to return as a guest choreographer this season for Marjorie Jones Competition Team!