At 3 years old, Emilee began dancing at Edye Cook's School of Dance and her love of dance grew year after year. In high school, she would travel in the summer to train in other states and soak up as much knowledge as she could. She attended both Oklahoma City University and West Virginia University to obtain her degree in dance. After college, she performed with a contemporary company before heading to NYC to train at Broadway Dance Center for their professional summer semester. Emilee and her husband Kaleb returned back to Marion to start their family and have since welcomed two precious babies into their world. Emilee has been teaching and mentoring students for over 10 years and has completed both the Dance Teacher Academy Summer Program at WVU and the Dance Education Laboratory Fundamentals course. She truly loves connecting with her students and encouraging them through their dance journey. She and Kaleb are proud to be #MarionMade and provide a place where dancers can excel and experience the joy of dance!

Emily’s love for dance began at the young age of 3. Growing up, she trained in numerous styles of competitive dance, including; ballet, lyrical, jazz, tap, musical theatre, acrobatics, hip hop, and pointe. She continued her study of dance at Oklahoma City University, where she graduated in 2016 with a Bachelor of Arts in Dance Performance. After graduation, Emily moved to New York for 4 years and took part in pre-production work, taught various styles of dance classes to multiple ages, and was a judge for Epic Dance Competition. Over the years, Emily has performed in countless musicals. Some of her favorites include; Nice Work If You Can Get It, Footloose, Cabaret, Oklahoma, and Rent. Emily has since moved back to Columbus, OH, where she continued her education down a different path. She now has her Masters in Early Childhood Education. She loves her job at Noble Academy, where she teaches 2nd Grade. Emily is so excited to continue spreading her love of dance by joining Irey Dance Academy!

Keeli is #MarionMade. A 4th generation dancer, she is the daughter of former studio owner, Edye Cook-Skidmore. Keeli graduated from Fort Hayes Pre-professional high school in Columbus, OH. She went on to get her BA in dance performance from Point Park University in Pittsburgh, PA, and then moved to Chicago to get her MA in Dance/Movement therapy from Columbia College. Keeli performed semiprofessionally in Chicago with Matter Dance Company and spent a year between undergrad and graduate school working and training with Broadway Dance Center in NYC. For the past 10 years, Keeli has been back in the Columbus area working as a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor in her own private practice, and has continued to teach dance here in Marion. Outside of her profession, Keeli has 3 amazing children who keep her busy and entertained.

Miss Allison began dancing at the age of 2. Growing up, she trained in numerous styles of dance, including; ballet, jazz, tap, and pointe. She continued her study of dance at Bowling Green State University, where she graduated in 2021 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Art Education with a minor in Dance. While at BGSU, Allison was part of University Dance Alliance as both a choreographer and performer. After graduation, Allison returned home, where she currently teaches middle & high school art at Pleasant Local Schools in addition to choreographing for the show choir - Spartans in Motion, coaching tennis, and continuing to teach dance!

Ellery found her love for dancing at 3 years old. She is from Marion and trained with the Edye Cook Dance Company for 7 years. During her time in the company she traveled to many places to take class, further her training, and perform - two of her favorites being New York City and Chicago. In high school, she attended the Oberlin Dance Intensive located at Oberlin College in Northeast Ohio. She just began her first semester at The Ohio State University majoring in Speech and Hearing Sciences, with a minor in dance! She loves working with young students and watching them grow into beautiful dancers!

Ellie found her love for dancing at 2 years old starting with tap and continuing to train in many styles; ballet, jazz, modern, pointe, and partnering!  She danced with the Edye Cook Dance Company for 7 years. During her time in the company she attended many dance intensives and traveled to many places like New York, New Orleans, and Chicago to take class, train, and perform. She just finished her first year at Ohio Wesleyan University with a minor in dance and is continuing her studies this year at OSUM. She is so excited to watch her student’s have fun dancing this year and see how much they grow!

Miss Maci was born and raised in Marion. She started dancing at the age of 5 and danced at Edye Cook’s School of Dance until she found her passion for tumbling and cheerleading. Maci graduated from Heidelberg University with a degree in early childhood education. While attending college, she was a member of the cheerleading team where she continued to build her tumbling knowledge and skills. After graduation, Maci continued to teach/coach local students throughout the community. Her passion for tumbling, technique, and having fun is how she’s grown to be a successful instructor. We are so lucky to have her join our dance family this year teaching Acro! Maci currently works at Pleasant Local Schools as a first grade teacher and is an incredible wife and mom to her husband, Brett, and their 5 children.

Kathy has taught private piano lessons since 1981 and has played for Miss Edye’s School of Dance and Performing Arts since 1990. Studying piano pedagogy at MVNU, Kathy has played for several local school productions, OMEA Solo and Ensemble, Marion Palace Theatre productions, OSUM, the Star Theater and has been pianist/guest pianist at several local churches. She also has had the opportunity to play for the Moscow Ballet Company Master ballet classes, worked with a 2-time Tony award choreographer as well as choreographers Bobby Bianca and Jeff Shade; pre-concert for Christian artist Larnelle Harris and pianist for the Four Aces and the Four Lads when they performed here in Marion at the Palace.

Outside of piano, she enjoys time with her husband, Ralph Hill, III, and their two labs Cocoa Chanel Hill, V and Christian Dior. Kathy and her husband are AVID roller coaster riders. She is the proud mother of Mally Reber (Dancer/Performer -NYC), Ralph Hill, IV (LA) and Karman Auble (Cincinnati).

Victoria is a Voice and Acting Teacher & Coach. She was born and raised in Marion, OH and graduated from Ridgedale High School. Like many in the area, she participated in whatever performance opportunities she could, including musicals, show choir, ensembles, concert choir, community theatre, piano lessons, acting lessons, and voice lessons. She wanted to continue her education in the Performance arena, and so attended the South Carolina School of the Arts at Anderson University. She graduated in 2015 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Music, one Minor in Theatre, and another Minor in Business. Soon after, she moved back to Marion and launched her own teaching studio. She is continually learning new techniques and strategies, and always fostering her love of performance art. She works with her students to improve skills and develop stronger confidence… and get some laughs in along the way!