Catherine was a competitive gymnast growing up and took to dancing and choreographing in college. She began taking adult classes at Feet First in 2018, including contemporary, jazz, and modern. Catherine earned a BS in psychology from the University of Mary Washington and an MA in Early Childhood Special Education from Columbia University. After a handful of years as a special education teacher, she pursued a post-masters program in applied behavior analysis at Penn State and became a Licensed Behavior Specialist through the Pennsylvania State Board of Medicine. Most recently, Catherine worked as a Board Certified Behavior Analyst, serving students ages 5-21 with autism spectrum disorder and intellectual disabilities in a private school setting. Currently, Catherine has put a pause on her career to raise her two children full-time. She is so grateful for the opportunity to share her expertise with the Feet First community and to support all children in their dance endeavors. 

Catherine’s role within the Feet First community is to support the dance teachers in accommodating students with a variety of needs. This includes providing lesson plan strategies, creating visual and tactile materials for use during classes, observing and consulting on specific students, and working with families to ensure that their child’s needs are met within the studio environment. Catherine’s services, while focused on our growing special needs population, benefit all dancers.