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shaping innovative, impactful dance instruction & educator training

Home

Bio

Work

Learn

shaping innovative, impactful dance instruction & educator training

Dr. Emily K. Gray

Ed.D., MFA

Dr. Emily K. Gray is a renowned dance educator, choreographer, and scholar whose distinguished career bridges K-12, higher education, and professional performance. With a doctorate from Vanderbilt and a passion for research-driven pedagogy, she leads the field in shaping innovative, impactful dance instruction and educator training nationwide.

My Companies

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CDA

CDA is an after-school based dance and cheerleading program designed for pre-school through middle school students.

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The Dance Dots

The Dance Dots is a choreographic and classroom management system designed for dance teachers, music teachers, and all instructors who work with children in a movement capacity.

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Selected Work & Research

Research-driven projects at the intersection of dance education, leadership, and learning.

Dancing Towards Progress

Vanderbilt University · Mixed-methods study

How do independent dance studio owners define and pursue success? Grounded in McClelland’s Theory of Needs…

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Festival Community Study

Cultural Engagement (2023)

Ethnographic fieldwork revealed patterns that strengthened audience connection and accessibility…

What we learned
Motivation & leadership Organizational learning Arts entrepreneurship Teacher training Program evaluation Embodied learning Retrieval cues

Teaching

MIT

  • Jazz Funk
  • Improvisational Dance
  • Moving Through Change (IAP 2026)

Endicott College

  • Dance History
  • Global Dance
  • Dance in Society

Speaking

  • 2025 — Movement & Memory (Energize Conference)
  • 2023 — Active Listening Through Improvisation (Bolles)
  • 2023 — Entrepreneurship in the Performing Arts (Endicott)
  • 2022 — Auxiliary Programming & Profitability (FCIS)
  • 2018 — Choreographic Formations & Classroom Management (NFO)
  • 2023–24 — Arts Entrepreneurship Podcast (Guest)

Leadership & Outreach

  • PIN Workshop Leader
  • Global mentorship (ICMD, India)
  • Volunteer work: The Bridge of NE FL, Children’s Home Society, Wolfson’s Children’s Hospital

From The Dance Dots™

The Dance Dots™ Handbook

Classroom formations, transitions, and memory cues that make teaching — and learning — easier.

Read full description
The Dance Dots Handbook
Coming Summer of 2026

Choreographing
Your Dance Program

A success framework for Studio Owners and Performing Arts Directors.

Preorder Now
Book mockup for Choreographing Your Dance by Dr. Emily K. Gray
Get in touch

Let’s talk

Have a question about programs, workshops, or speaking? Send a note and I’ll get back to you soon.

Prefer email? emilygray@thedancedots.com