About us.
Glen Roc has been a pillar in the community for 48 years! We strive to inspire our dancers to truly love and enjoy the art of dance. We create a place where dancers flourish both technically and artistically. Our goal is for every dancer to experience the joy that comes from expressing themselves through movement.
Laney Engelhard, Director of Glen Roc Dance Shoppe, has dedicated more than 30 years to the art of dance as a professional dancer, choreographer, educator, and mentor.
Laney began her training in Ellensburg, WA, and later graduated from the Washington Academy of Performing Arts. She went on to study on scholarship at Pacific Northwest Ballet School, The Rock School of Pennsylvania Ballet, and Lou Conte Dance Studio. Her professional dance career includes dancing for Oregon Ballet Theatre, Lustig Dance Theatre, American Repertory Ballet, and Terpsicorps Dance Theatre. She has also performed in the Radio City Christmas Spectacular, guested with Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, and performed with renowned choreographer Trey McIntyre on Michael Curry’s production of Spirits.
Early in her career, Laney also worked for Universal Dance Association (UDA), traveling throughout the West Coast as a coach and trainer for dance teams. This experience allowed her to work with dancers from a wide variety of backgrounds while developing her passion for coaching, mentorship, and dance education.
As a choreographer, Laney has created original works for professional companies, universities, and dance organizations throughout the country, including American Repertory Ballet, Lustig Dance Theatre, Princeton’s BodyHype Ensemble, Rider Dances, ComeUnity, The Outlet Dance Project, Collaborative Arts Motion New Dance Works, and Ballet Northwest. Her choreography has earned numerous top honors and awards at regional and national dance competitions, reflecting her commitment to artistic excellence and innovative movement.
Laney has also been an integral part of the Rider University dance program for 22 years, sharing her expertise as an educator, choreographer, and mentor. For the past 10 years, she has served as an Adjunct Professor at Rider University.
Throughout her career, Laney has had the privilege of training, mentoring, and coaching dancers throughout the tri-state area. Many of her students have gone on to pursue dance at leading college programs and professional careers in the performing arts.
Laney is passionate about creating an environment where dancers are challenged to grow, encouraged to find their individuality, and inspired to develop a lifelong love of dance. She is proud to bring her extensive professional, choreographic, and teaching experience to the dancers and families of Glen Roc Dance Shoppe.
Award Winning Choreography
Continuing Education
Industry Professionals
Years of Experience
Our Amazing Faculty
Our dance educators are highly experienced and well-versed in a variety of dance areas. Trust in our expertise to achieve the best outcome for your child.
Shannin Kavanagh
is an elementary school teacher and a graduate of Rider University, where she earned degrees in Elementary Education and Dance Studies. Shannin has been dancing since she was two and has been a competitive dancer since she was four. Throughout her competitive dance career, she has received prestigious awards and convention scholarships and has been invited to audition for professional dance opportunities, where she has been selected as a finalist many times.
She began her dance training at Performing Arts Academy and continued her training at For Dancers Only in Little Falls, NJ. Shannin is technically trained in ballet, jazz, tap, contemporary, lyrical, modern, musical theatre, pointe, and hip hop. She has had the privilege of training in many different styles of dance under world-renowned teachers and choreographers, including Al Blackstone, Ray Leeper, Mike Minery, Blake Krapels, and Kristen Gorski.
Shannin has also had the opportunity to train and perform with Artichoke Dance Company in New York City and perform in the River Dance Festival. She was also a Capezio model and has been featured in some advertisements.
During her time at Rider University, Shannin was a member of the Rider Dance Ensemble, where she had the opportunity to showcase her own choreography and
perform choreography created by other students. She was also a member of the Rider Dance Team, where she had the opportunity to perform at the MAAC (Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference) Championships.
As a dance educator, Shannin brings an informative, academic, and fun approach to her classes, helping students develop a deeper understanding of technique, movement, and performance.
Lauren Maguirre
Lauren Maguirre studied at Mercer County School for the Performing Arts for a year. Lauren danced at Glen Roc for twelve years in ballet, tap, jazz, lyrical, hip-hop, and pointe. She was a member of the Glen Roc Competition Team for three years and spent several years as a student teacher. Lauren completed a senior internship at Glen Roc Dance Shoppe under the supervision of Miss Alma and Miss Barbara. She graduated from Rider University with a degree in Business and Dance Education.
Alea Pinho
began dancing when she was 5 years old. She joined her studio’s competition team at 11 years old and competed in numerous competitions until she graduated high school. She then furthered her dance career at Rider
University, where she graduated in 2021 with a double major in Elementary Education and Dance with a minor in Special Education. She was also part of the Rider dance team for all 4 years of college and began choreographing for the
team as a freshman. Alea was elected President of the dance team 2 years in a row. While at Rider, Alea trained at Princeton Ballet School, where she was offered a job as a hip-hop teacher at a nearby studio. Alea began teaching here in 2018. Alea creates an exciting and fun atmosphere in all her classes to enhance her student’s confidence and ensure they are comfortable performing in the studio and on stage.
Joscelyn Hunter
Joscelyn Hunter is currently a full-time student attending Rider University. She is a psychology major with a minor in dance performance. Joscelyn has been dancing for over ten years and has studied all dance genres. One of her most significant accomplishments would be winning World of Dance, New Jersey, in 2019 and traveling to Los Angeles, California, to continue the competition. She has taken classes and broadened her technical education at Broadway Dance Center in New York City, Millennium in Los Angeles, Jump Dance Convention, and Monsters Dance Convention. During her time at Rider University, she was invited to Florence, Italy, to perform at META 2023, the Meeting of European Theatre Academies, where she performed in one of the most famous theatres in Italy. Joscelyn was also invited to Boston, Massachusetts, to perform that same piece with six other dancers. In addition to this, she put on an original piece at her University, which received plenty of recognition. Joscelyn created a dance piece that was asked to be performed at the NJAHPERD Dance Gala Convention 2024.