Riley Patterson President Riley is a senior here at Michigan State University and is originally from Clarkston, MI. She is majoring in mathematics with a minor in dance and is in the honors college! Additionally, she is a part of the secondary education program and the urban education cohort program. Her future goal is to become a high school math teacher during the day and then coach the school’s dance team. A fun fact about her is that she was adopted from Mission, Texas! Riley has been dancing since she was two and danced competitively for ten years! Riley trained on her high school’s varsity dance team for three years and was captain of the team for her senior year. Her favorite style of dance is jazz and hip hop. ☆︎☆︎☆︎☆︎ Riley is extremely grateful and super excited to lead The Showstoppers through their 2023-2024 season. She's looking forward to expressing her passion for dance in and outside of practice. She also cannot wait to welcome new members and connect with everyone throughout the year!
Jenna Hemmes Vice President Jenna is a junior here at Michigan State University majoring in Marketing with minors in Dance, Entrepreneurship & Innovation, and Arts & Cultural Management. She is from Grand Rapids and grew up dancing at the studio, Dance Dimensions, for 15 years! For her senior year, she was apart of Dance Dimensions’ Novice competition team as well. Jenna’s favorite style of dance is tap! Along with being a member of the Showstoppers, she is involved in other organizations on campus including Broad Student Senate (Vice President of Operations) and the Wharton Center Student Marketing Organization (Professional Development Chair). Jenna, also, works at the Wharton Center for Performing Arts as the Broadway Marketing and Communications intern and for MSU Athletics as a Marketing and Fan Engagement Intern. ☆︎☆︎☆︎☆︎ Jenna is thrilled to be able to help lead the Showstoppers on the executive board again! She is so excited to be able to showcase this team at many different events throughout the year and be able to choreograph and dance with her favorite people.
Sarah Baringer Secretary Sarah is a junior here at Michigan State University majoring in Kinesiology with a minor in dance. She is from Winston Salem, North Carolina and danced at Extravadance and Tumble since she was two years old and started competing at the age of six. Her studio was the opening number for Kidz Bop! This is Sarah's second year on the team and her favorite style of dance is tap. A fun fact about her is that she has been nominated for multiple Industry Dance Awards. ☆︎☆︎☆︎☆︎ Sarah cannot wait to be Secretary for the Showstoppers this season! She cannot wait to choreograph for the team and help out whenever she can.
Hannah Saale Treasurer Hannah is a senior here at Michigan State University studying zoology. Her career dream is to work with elephants in the San Diego Zoo or in Africa for a conservation and care! Hannah is originally from Las Vegas, NV, where she was dance captain for high school musical theatre. This is her fourth year on our team. She was previously the team's Vice President, but now serves as Treasurer for the second time! Hannah’s favorite styles of dance include pom and hip hop. Along with dance, Hannah’s other hobbies include volleyball and digital art. She is also incredibly passionate about animals and has one dog and ten cats! ☆︎☆︎☆︎☆︎ Hannah is so excited to continue leading this team into doing amazing things! She is going to do her best as Treasurer to provide the team with the most fabulous season yet.
Maggie George Social Activities Director Maggie is a journalism senior here at Michigan State University with minors in history. She's been dancing for 13 years and this is her third year with the Showstoppers. Maggie is from a suburb of Grand Rapids, MI called Caledonia and previously danced with Dorr Dance Academy's competition team. After having the opportunity to take a tap class as part of her coursework and when she taught hip hop at Opera Block Performing Arts Center in Portland, MI, Maggie realized she cannot pick a favorite between tap, contemporary, and hip hop. Alongside her constant dancing, Maggie is a political reporting intern at MIRS news service covering Capitol politics and has worked at The State News covering public and mental health. ☆︎☆︎☆︎☆︎ Maggie is extremely excited to run the team’s social activities. She loves to create fun atmospheres for all and share her passion for friendship and activities with the rest of the girls. Maggie is looking forward to this year’s team events and activities!
Isabella Hanika Social Media Director Isabella is a sophomore here at Michigan State University from Grosse Pointe, Michigan. She is majoring in Human Biology on the Pre-med track. This is Isabella's second year as a Showstopper! She danced for 15 years at Casali School of Dance in St. Clair Shores. Additionally, she was on a dance team in the winter for eight years that danced at nursing homes as volunteer work, which Isabella says "was easily some of the most fulfilling times in my dance career". Isabella's favorite styles of dance are jazz and ballet. A fun fact about her is that she loves Diet Coke especially from McDonalds. She is so excited and proud to be on the team! She loves to dance and would like to continue to dance for her entire life! ☆︎☆︎☆︎☆︎ Bella is extremely excited to be running the teams social media. She is super happy to be able to showcase her incredible team and their skills and authentic energies! She cannot wait to be able to capture all of the teams fantastic moments.
We are looking forward to another great season with the ShowStoppers!