Brooke Jerome is a K-12 Dance Educator for Memphis-Shelby County Schools (TN), and an award-winning teacher and choreographer in the private sector at numerous dance studios, schools, community theatres, and arts organization throughout the Mid-South. She was recognized as a “Level 5” Educator by the Tennessee Department of Education (2024), and was recently awarded “Best Choreography” at the NWMTA Allie Awards (2023) and “Outstanding Choreography” at The Orpheum Theatre’s HSMTAs (2023). Brooke holds a BFA in K-12 Dance Education from the University of Southern Mississippi, where she was awarded “Outstanding Dance Educator” in 2018. Brooke is the Co-Artistic Director of Hot Foot Honeys Tap Dance Company, which works to preserve, promote, and perform rhythm tap across the Mid-South. Brooke currently serves on the Board of Directors for the National Dance Education Organization as the South Central representative. She also served as the Undergraduate Student Representative from 2016-2018, and presented at NDEO’s 2017, 2018, and 2019 National Conferences.

Helen serves as the Fine Arts Education Specialist for the state of Ohio. An active leader in arts education and policy, Helen served on the Board of Directors for the NDEO ('22-'24) and as the Vice President of the State Education Agency Directors of Arts Education ('23-'25). She has 20+ years of combined experience teaching dance in K-12, higher education, the independent sector. She is currently a Ph.D. student studying Educational Policy (OSU) with a focus on arts educational policy and educational equity. She holds an MFA in Dance (ASU), MEd in Educational Foundations (NAU), is an RSDE, RYT200 and STEAM Certified Educator/Administrator. Helen's research and in-practice work on pedagogy and curriculum has been published in JODE, DEiP, JDSP, and JMD. Helen is passionate about ensuring all students have access to well-rounded, high-quality arts education.

Naomi E. Boyd, Ph.D. currently serves as the 27th Dean and Chief Operating Officer of the Daniels College of Business (DCB) at the University of Denver, where she works collaboratively with university leadership to shape the future of higher education and advance DCB in meaningful ways through innovative programming, strategic realignment, and market relevance. She is a seasoned leader with a diverse background spanning industry, government, academia, and the arts, with over two decades of expertise in strategy, fiscal management, and academic administration. Passionate about the intersection of business, industry, and the arts, she is dedicated to shaping the next generation of socially responsible business leaders equipped with cutting-edge innovative mind sets and entrepreneurial spirits. She grew up in the Arts district in Dallas, Texas where she attended Greiner Middle School and Booker T. Washington Highschool for the Performing and Visual Arts. She spent years training with Ballet Dallas, Dallas Black, Buster Cooper’s School of Dance, and Ballet Austin. She earned a BFA in Dance with a focus on ballet from the University of Texas at Austin and danced professionally for several years in Texas. A spinal injury caused an unexpected and early retirement. She went on to study business, eventually earning a PhD in finance and working in industry, government, and academia for the past 25 years. She returned to the dance world in 2009, teaching in Morgantown, West Virginia, where a desire to bring the arts to Appalachia, created pathways to engage in community based work and teaching at Morgantown Dance Company, AW Dance Company, and West Virginia University. Most recently, she served as President of the Board of Directors of Conflux Dance Company, a diverse, contemporary dance company headquartered in Richmond, VA. Her recent move to Denver, CO required her to step down from the dance company’s board where she had worked to increase fundraising, build out a strategic vision for the company, and oversee the production of the company’s multiple performances each year to ensure fiscal stability and growth opportunities. Previously, she served as the seventh Dean of the School of Business at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), where Dr. Boyd spearheaded a transformative vision for business education and co-led academic transformation for the VCU campus. Under her guidance, VCU's School of Business collectively created a strategic roadmap, Bridge 2028, a comprehensive strategic plan that aligned the school's core values and served as a catalyst toward a revitalized future.

Lane Swenson, is currently obtaining their MFA in dance and am in their 3rd and final year at Arizona State University. Lane Swenson has been a dance educator for the past 10 years and has worked in Secondary and Higher Education. They specialize in Dance History, Dance Cultures, Global Contexts, and Critical Inquiry. They also specialize in teaching various social dance forms which includes but aren't limited to: Western Social Dance, Ballroom Dance, DanceSport, and Afro-Latin social dance forms. Lane Swenson has developed and overseen the creation of various social dance education programs in both secondary and higher education institutions. They also hold a degree in Business Management and have worked as a Corporate Human Resources Manager for the past 6 years. My skills include, but aren’t limited to: events management, marketing, dance curriculum design, training and development, music editing, financial analysis, and talent acquisition.

Quan Powers, a devoted advocate for arts education, brings over 14 years of experience to the forefront of the field. With a Bachelor of Science in Dance from Stephen F. Austin State University as the cornerstone of his journey, Quan has cultivated a rich tapestry of skills and knowledge. His dedication to enriching the educational landscape led him to pursue dual master's degrees, one in Curriculum and Instruction from Southwestern College and another in Educational Leadership from the University of North Texas. As a seasoned educator, Quan has left an indelible mark, having taught theater and dance while also shaping curriculum to inspire the next generation of artists and leaders. Beyond the classroom, he ardently champions the transformative power of the arts, advocating for its integration into every facet of learning. With Quan Powers at the helm, the future of arts education shines brightly, promising boundless opportunities for creative exploration and personal growth.

Yauri Dalencour, PhD(c), MFA, MA, BFA, BA is an interdisciplinary visual and performing artist, anthropologist, scholar, educator, is on faculty at Howard University and is a technologist working at META with the Fundamentals in Artificial Intelligence Research Team on an open-source Machine Learning project. Yauri also serves on various peer-reviewed journal’s editorial committees and serves as a Board of Directors for the National Dance Education Organization. Yauri’s early doctoral research focused on Dance at HBCUs, in her MFA work she focused on Stereotypes in Black Motherhood in Performance, her MA was focused on Dance as Culture in Educational settings and her current doctoral research focuses on the effects of visuality across social media and it’s impacts on attitudes and behaviors toward human experiences and the use of digital tools to engage with visuality improving human experiences and perceptions of self and community. More specifically, she is investigating the evolution in Black visuality and its impact on shifts in behavior and interests in Black Dance influenced by social media. She is concerned with intersections in the arts, culture, technology and education and holds bachelors degrees in Dance as well as in International Studies. Yauri is a wife and mom and is based between NYC, Washington DC and Silicon Valley.

Lóri Fejes is a student and scholar of dance and dance history. Growing up in Hungary he practiced folk dance at an early age but found his true calling for dance in college, when he began training in ballet and modern, to overcome childhood trauma. He is now a graduate student, researching dance as politics and advocacy, trying new styles whenever he can, and choreographing ritual, folk, and contemporary pieces. He is a member of the seventh cohort of NDEO’s PK-12 Mentorship Program, hoping to cement his studio teaching before beginning doctoral studies in dance.

Hello, my name is Rachel Mehle and I am a current student at West Virginia University majoring in dance and multidisciplinary studies focused on forensics, criminology, and anthropology. I am a native Coloradoan and have worked with various studios around the Denver area. I was very happy to attend my first-ever conference this past year in my native city as it made my overall time at the conference an even greater experience. My school had its own table at the conference and I was happy to be a representative and talk to various attendees about my program and how we work with a dance science program.