Howard promoted to lead MCC Dance Team

Emma Howard has been promoted to director of the McLennan Dance Team following the departure of Ashlee Keyes. Howard has spent the last three years serving as an assistant.

Howard joined the program in 2022 as a volunteer assistant and was promoted to full-time prior to the 2023-24 academic year. In her time with the squad, she has helped lead the team to four NDA National Championships, including making program history in 2025 by winning two in the same year. The team has also won five ADTS National Championships and performed with Spirit of America at the 96th Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade® in New York City in 2022. Those teams have featured seven All-Americans.

Howard was a two-year member of the McLennan Dance Team from 2018-20. During her freshman year, the squad claimed the program's third consecutive NDA Jazz Division III National Championship, finished third in NDA Hip Hop Division III, claimed the ADTS Collegiate National Championship in Division III Jazz and finished as the first runner-up in ADTS Division III Hip Hop. She served as team captain for the 2019-20 season and earned NDA All-American honors before the competition season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Following her time at McLennan, Howard joined the Stephen F. Austin State University Dance Team and her success continued. The team won the NDA Division I Pom National Championship in her junior season. As a senior, Howard became a team captain, leading the squad to an NDA Division I Spirit Rally national title and two national titles as the Dance Team Union College Classic in Division I Pom and Division I Hip Hop.

Howard received a bachelor's degree of business administration in accounting with a minor in dance team coaching from SFA in May 2022, and a master's degree in coaching and athletics administration from Concordia University in Dec. 2023.