Session Time

Room #1001

Room #1003

(Studio Theater)

Room #1004

Room #1006

Room #1008

8:00-8:30am

Registration & Check In

Towson University Center for the Arts, 1st Floor Lobby

8:30-9:20am

MDEA Member Meeting
Towson University Center for the Arts, Room #1003 (Studio Theater)

9:30-10:30am

Males Dancing Circle of Support

Reggie Cole

Somatic Snacks to Improve Dance Skill and Dancer Wellbeing

Nancy Wanich-Romita

Increasing Satisfaction in Recreational Dance: Student-Centered Pedagogy and Community-Driven Processes

Caitlyn Creasy

Integrating Rotator Disc & FA(r) Principles into Ballet Pedagogy

Catherine Horta-Hayden

Improv-ing Through the Decades

Melinda Blomquist

10:45am-12:15pm

Exhibits/Vendors
Set Up at 10:30am

Creating with Chance & Change: Move, Include, Expand

Jill Vasbinder Morrison

Somatic Tools for Coordinated Expressive Movement

Nicole Martinell

Sabor y Soul: Latin Roots and the Contemporary Blend

Bayardo Martinez  

Standing on the Shoulders of Giants

Monique Walker 

Gender and Dance Education Artistry: What’s Inside?

Lindsey Bauer

12:15-1:15pm

Exhibits/Vendors

Lunch/Networking – The Glen Dining Hall 

Join MDEA conference attendees for lunch and an opportunity to connect with the field.  

Bring your lunch ticket for a cafeteria-style dining experience.

1:15-2:15pm

NHSDA: Connect & Reflect

Tiffany Alastanos-Martin

Leading Change in Arts Education: Tools & Tactics for Advocacy

Rachel McGrain

NOW! That's What I Call

Hip Hop

Darryl Pilate

Audience-ography: Performance and Engagement

Emily Moul

Sabor y Soul: Latin Roots and the Contemporary Blend

Bayardo Martinez  

2:30-3:30pm

What's the NBCT Tea!

Jaye Knutson

Building the Inner Champion: Mental Wellness & Identity Beyond the Stage

Stephanie Case

"From Centerstage to Front of House": A Unique Pathway to Leadership

Temisha Richardson

Talking Back: A tool for building Inclusive Culturally Responsive Pedagogy/Andragogy

Mya Dixon Ajanku

4:15-6:00pm

MDEA Social & Awards Ceremony

Stoney River Steakhouse & Grill - Towson, MD

Target Audience Key:

AE = All Environments | AD = Arts Administration | EC = Early Childhood

HE = Higher Education |K12 = K-12 Education | PR = Private/Parochial/Independent Schools | PU = Public Schools

PS = Private Studio | ST = Student | TA = Teaching Artist

8:30am – 9:15am

MDEA Member Meeting w/ MDEA Board of Directors

Participants will hear updates from MDEA.

Audience: MDEA Members

9:30am – 10:30am

Males Dancing Circle of Support w/ Reggie Cole (Inclusion, Movement, Research)

This session will share methods for cultivating a supportive space for males in our dance studios and the greater community.

Audience: AE

Somatic Snacks to Improve Dance Skill and Dancer Wellbeing w/ Nancy Wanich-Romita (Movement, Neuroscience, Research, Somatics, Workshop)

What is an FA® somatic snack you ask? It is a brief embodied training practice that is easily woven through a dance technique class to enhance student confidence, focus, and improve skill. The presenter will guide participants through a series of embodied practices in Functional Awareness®. Each exercise is 1-4 minutes in length. The session applies current research on the efficacy of using brief repeated body/mind practices to improve dance skills and support dancer wellness during dance technique class. FA® somatic snacks can be a tool to breathe new life in your usual routine of teaching. This session offers a combination of information dissemination along with fun movement explorations. The strategies employ self-tactile, visual, auditory, and kinesthetic cues that encourage students at any skill level to enter the next movement task with ease in the nervous system, resilience in the musculoskeletal system, and readiness in mind. This session will promote new pathways to social emotional learning through somatic body learning.

Audience: AE

Increasing Satisfaction in Recreational Dance: Student-Centered Pedagogy & Community-Driven Processes w/ Caitlyn Creasy (Research, Community Dance)

How can recreational dance programs use student-centered activities to align the values of teachers, students, and families and increase satisfaction? Carroll Manor Dance is an offering of Carroll Manor Recreation Council (Baltimore County Recreation and Parks). Existing literature supports the notion that student-centered pedagogy increases student engagement, and that learning is a collaborative and embodied process. This presentation will explore ways that dance educators in recreational dance settings can amplify participant voice while providing high-quality dance instruction and how certain instructional activities increase satisfaction in the program and engagement with class content.

Audience: AD; ST; TA; Recreational Dance

Integrating Rotator Disc & FA(r) Principles into Ballet Pedagogy w/ Catherine Horta-Hayden (Movement, Lecture)

Experience innovative instructional strategies that combine the use of rotator discs (21 Century Physical Therapy Rehabilitation Tool) and Functional Awareness® Principles through pedagogical sequencing that will connect the embodied experiences to traditional ballet technique.

Audience: AE

Improving Through the Decades w/ Melinda Blomquist (Movement)

Join us for a fun session of improvisation based on movement ideas from various decades. Taking inspiration from movement ideas, we will play and explore as we celebrate the 10th anniversary of MDEA!

Audience: AE

10:45am – 12:15pm

Creating with Chance & Change: Move, Include, Expand w/ Jill Vasbinder Morrison (Inclusion, Movement, Research, Workshop)

This session welcomes dancers and educators as we explore using chance & change to open up our creative & teaching practices. We will learn about the concepts of chance used by post-modern artist Merce Cunningham and the historical work “50 Looks,” with a case study model of how we learned the solo and then developed into a group work. We will then create our own work(s) and explore how to use this process with students as a dancemaking tool. Through explorations or action, energy, space, unlocking your creative minds from habits, bias, and judgement, participants will perform this choreography.

Audience: HE; K12; PR; PU; PS; ST; TA

Somatic Tools for Coordinated Expressive Movement w/ Nicole Martinell  (Inclusion, Movement, Research, Somatics, Workshop)

Celebrate the body’s responsiveness through a movement session that explores how the torso adapts, supports, and expresses. Participants explore somatic tools through floorwork, tactile props, imagery, and guided movement explorations focused on torso-limb coordination, spiral interplay, and dynamic alignment. Rooted in Alexander Technique, Bartenieff Fundamentals, and experiential anatomy, this workshop offers practical strategies to help students access greater ease, efficiency, resilience, and artistry. Guided exploration and reflection deepen educators’ understanding of how a responsive torso can enliven movement and empower students toward fuller embodiment. Come ready to move, reflect, and expand your teaching toolkit.

Audience: AE

Sabor y Soul: Latin Roots and the Contemporary Blend w/Bayardo Martinez (Inclusion, Movement, Workshop)

This invigorating workshop explores the powerful fusion of traditional Latin dance and contemporary technique. The session anchors itself in the Sabor (flavor) of Latin roots, showcasing rhythmic grounding, authentic body isolations, and foundational passion. It seamlessly integrates the Soul (alma) by drawing on contemporary concepts of breath, release, and spinal articulation to unlock greater fluidity and personal expression. Move beyond fixed social forms and structures to develop a genuinely unique, blended style. Participants gain practical tools and an innovative movement phrase that flawlessly fuses the fire of tradition with the creative freedom of contemporary pedagogy. Unleash a new vocabulary of movement rooted in rhythm and built on individual artistic voice.

Audience: AE

Standing on the Shoulders of Giants w/ Monique Walker (Movement, Workshop)

This lecture/movement workshop is a Sankofa (go back and get it) learning experience, introducing participants to the Umfundalai contemporary African dance technique’s history and movement vocabulary. Participants will engage in reflective written and movement activities to address the phrase, “When and Where We Enter”, and identify the people and experiences that contribute to their current perspective on dance.

Audience: AE

Gender and Dance Education Artistry: What’s Inside? w/ Lindsey Bauer (Inclusion, Movement, Workshop)

In this workshop participants will explore where gender lives inside the movement we teach/perform and how to provide options for inclusive choreographic teaching practices. In this movement workshop, participants will experience an improvisation-based warm-up, opportunities to create movement ideas, and in small groups explore and perform the ways we can create space for broader ideas about gender. There will be opportunities for discussion throughout.

Audience: EC; HE; K12; PR; PU; PS; ST; TA

1:15pm – 2:15pm

NHSDA: Connect & Reflect w/ Tiffany Alastanos-Martin (Inclusion, Honor Society)                                                                                                                                                   

Connect with fellow NHSDA sponsors to explore ways your chapter can make a meaningful impact on students and your community. We’ll review current national NHSDA initiatives and share ideas for successful projects and events. Whether you’re a seasoned sponsor or just considering starting a chapter, this collaborative session will offer inspiration, resources, and practical tips to support and grow your program.

Audience: HE; K12; PR; PU; PS

Leading Change in Arts Education: Tools & Tactics for Advocacy w/ Rachel McGrain (Advocacy & Policy)

The session provides a broad look at Maryland arts education advocacy. The session will educate attendees on what Maryland public school students should have access to under the Code of Maryland Regulations, the impacts of the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future legislation on arts education, and ways attendees can make an advocacy strategy to address issues of arts education access in their own communities.

Audience: K12; PU; TA

NOW! That's What I Call Hip Hop w/ Darryl Pilate (Movement)

Step into a nostalgic groove with this dynamic hip hop class, inspired by the golden era of the late '90s and early 2000s. In the spirit of reflection, we blend iconic beats with classic moves, celebrating a time when hip hop culture redefined music and dance. From old-school rhythms to timeless choreography, the session invites you to relive the energy, attitude, and soul of a pivotal era. Whether you're a seasoned dancer or just starting out, this class offers a fun, high-energy experience that honors the past while keeping the vibe alive. Come move, sweat, and reminisce—hip hop style.

Audience: HE; K12; PR; PU; PS; ST; TA

Audience-ography: Performance and Engagement w/ Emily Moul (Movement, Technology, Workshop)                                                                 

Audience-ography: Performance and Engagement aims to expand the connection between performers and observers. Using an interactive technology tool, dancers will adapt their performance techniques and improvise based on feedback from the audience. In addition, dancers will educate audiences about various genres and elements of dance. Participants in this session will act as both performer and audience member to move in a variety of styles while also navigating real-time feedback that informs what comes next. The session will contain elements of composition, improvisation, explore pre-performance activities, and provide participants the resources to implement this project on a stage or in the studio. This session is recommended for dance instructors seeking to introduce new improvisational or chance strategies to their classes or performances.                                                                                                                           

 Audience: K12; PR; PU; PS

Sabor y Soul: Latin Roots and the Contemporary Blend w/Bayardo Martinez (Inclusion, Movement, Workshop)

This invigorating workshop explores the powerful fusion of traditional Latin dance and contemporary technique. The session anchors itself in the Sabor (flavor) of Latin roots, showcasing rhythmic grounding, authentic body isolations, and foundational passion. It seamlessly integrates the Soul (alma) by drawing on contemporary concepts of breath, release, and spinal articulation to unlock greater fluidity and personal expression. Move beyond fixed social forms and structures to develop a genuinely unique, blended style. Participants gain practical tools and an innovative movement phrase that flawlessly fuses the fire of tradition with the creative freedom of contemporary pedagogy. Unleash a new vocabulary of movement rooted in rhythm and built on individual artistic voice.

Audience: AE

2:30pm – 3:30pm

What's the NBCT Tea! w/ Jaye Knutson (Advocacy & Policy, Credentialling)

What's the NBCT Tea! Panel of informed teachers, administrators and policy representatives clarifying the whats, hows, whens and wheres of NBCT compliance for K-12 dance educators. We'll sift through the rhetoric, misinformation and good intentions to clarify the demand, identify dance's unique options and consider their relative merits and disadvantages in time and cost. This session will answer all your questions about NBCT compliance for dance. You'll leave this session feeling confidently informed about how to secure your advanced teaching certificate with all the rights, privileges and responsibilities that come with it!

Audience: AD; K12; PU; ST; TA

Building the Inner Champion: Mental Wellness & Identity Beyond the Stage w/ Stephanie Case (Inclusion, Neuroscience, Workshop)

This session explores how dance educators and coaches can support students' mental wellness and identity development alongside technical training. Drawing from the presenter’s C.H.A.M.P. coaching framework (Clarity, Harness Mental Strength, Align with Purpose, Master Inner Leadership, Perform with Presence), participants will engage in reflective practices and interactive tools designed to promote confidence, motivation, and psychological safety in dance spaces. Through stories, strategies, and group discussion, we will reflect on how to celebrate and sustain Maryland’s dance artistry by nurturing the whole person—especially in the face of pressure, perfectionism, and performance demands.

Audience: AD; HE; K12; PR; PU

"From Centerstage to Front of House": A Unique Pathway to Leadership w/ Temisha Richardson (Leadership)

This session will explore Temisha Richardson’s dynamic leadership journey from the dance studio to the central office. Beginning as a passionate dance educator, she transitioned into leadership as a middle school team leader, where she cultivated collaboration and instructional growth. Her leadership expanded as an assistant principal and later principal, where she led school improvement and launched innovative arts programs. Now serving as the Instructional Supervisor for Dance Education in Prince George’s County Public Schools, Temisha supports districtwide dance instruction and teacher development. Participants will gain insight into navigating leadership pathways while staying rooted in a passion for the arts.

Audience: AD; K12; PU

Talking Back: A tool for building Inclusive Culturally Responsive Pedagogy/Andragogy w/ Mya Dixon Ajanku (Inclusion, Research)

As we reflect on a decade of Maryland dance artistry and education, this session explores how honoring student voices through "talking back" can transform the classroom into a more inclusive, culturally responsive space. This lecture-style presentation will unpack the importance of student input in both pedagogy (K–12) and andragogy (adult learners), offering strategies to cultivate feedback loops that empower learners and affirm identity. Participants will be invited to reflect on their own practices and identify one actionable space for integrating student voice, as a tool for sustaining equitable and responsive dance education across communities.

Audience: HE; K12; PR; PU; TA