MEET THE STAFF

Devon has coached cheer at HCDC since the opening day. She has developed into an athlete favorite with her upbeat personality, endless energy, and constant motivation. Devon’s passion for the sport of cheerleading is evident in her coaching. A lifetime cheer athlete, Devon loves passing on her knowledge to others.

Annalie Cummings has been competing in competitive cheerleading since she was 7 years old. She has experience in all positions (flyer, base, and backspot). She loves cheerleading and passing on her knowledge and experience. In her free time she enjoys hanging out with friends and family and just relaxing.

Annalie joined HCDC in its first year as a cheer and tumble coach, and led her team to a National championship win in HCDC’s second year. Annalie is an excellent choreographer and has shown strong leadership skills from a young age in working with All Star teams. At HCDC, Annalie is known by her students as determined, thorough, and positive!

Taylor Hobgood began dancing at age two in Hillsborough, North Carolina. She has trained in ballet, jazz, lyrical, contemporary, tap, musical theater, pom and hip hop. Taylor competitively danced throughout middle and high school and has competed against top studios across the country. In May of 2020, she graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with degrees in Psychology and Sociology. During her time at UNC-Chapel Hill, Taylor was a four year member of the UNC Dance Team and cheered for Tar Heels from the sidelines! She competed yearly in the National Dance Association’s Collegiate College Championship, and was a member of the team that placed 6th in the nation in 2019!

Taylor has been coaching dance for over five years, and with Hillsborough Cheer and Dance Company for two years. She believes movement says things that words simply cannot express and her teaching philosophy is that all dancers have unique artistry that can be tapped into through pushing boundaries. Her goals are to create a space where dancers can grow their artistry and foster their love of dance!

Alexis Hobgood is a Hillsborough native and began her dance training at the age of two. She has trained in lyrical, tap, contemporary, musical theater, hip hop, ballet, pom and jazz. Alexis became part of a competitive dance team at the age of six. Throughout her career as a company dancer, she has had the opportunity to take classes from many well-known professional dancers and choreographers, such as Travis Wall and Brian Friedman. She also competed against some of the top studios on the east coast. Alexis will be attending The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in the fall. During her free time, she enjoys traveling and spending time with friends. She is super excited to share her passion for and knowledge of dance with others!

Emma grew up training in many different styles of dance from the young age of two at Miller Street Dance Academy in Charlotte, North Carolina. She danced competitively for thirteen years and competed solos and groups in styles including ballet, pointe, jazz, tap, lyrical, acrobatics, contemporary, hip hop, and many others. With experiences such as performing in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, participating in the Rockettes Summer Intensive, winning an Industry Dance Award, and many others, she truly has lots to offer. Emma has found her new home at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and is looking forward to teaching at Hillsborough Cheer and Dance.

My name is Tori Owens, and I started dancing at In Motion Dance Center in Winston Salem, NC at the age of 4 and continued until graduation. Additionally, I competed with the Dance Elite competition team at In Motion from age 13 until graduation. I was also a member of the Reagan High School Raiderettes Dance Team for 3 years. During the summer between my junior and senior year of high school, I was fortunate to attend NC Governor’s School East for dance.

Today, I am a rising junior at UNC Chapel Hill, and I enjoy choreographing for and performing with the Carolina Vibe Dance Team. I love all styles of dance, but my favorite is contemporary! I am so excited to join the faculty at Hillsborough Cheer and Dance!

Graduated from UNC Chapel Hill in May 2019 with her Bachelor of Arts in American History. Devin is currently a graduate student in the Masters of Arts in Teaching program at UNC, with a focus in Elementary Education. Devin is originally from Wilmington, where she was a competitive gymnast for almost 10 years, competing through level 9. Devin competed her highest levels at Gymnastics & More in Little River, South Carolina. USA Gymnastics Certified and CPR & AED Certified, Devin has worked with kids at multiple levels through coaching, youth ministry, and student teaching.

Candace holds a bachelor’s degree in bio-chemistry from Shaw University and a masters degree in biomedical science from UNC. She has been with teaching locally for 17 years and her choreography consistently ranks at the top in many competitions. Candace has danced for over 20 years and auditioned and was accepted to attend Talent Unlimited High School in New York City where she performed with numerous dance companies throughout the country. She is a former National Dance Competitor. Candace choreographed the dance “Lose Control” which was performed on BET’s Television Show 106 and Park on Wednesday April 12th 2006 for “Wild Out Wednesday”. Candace has taught dance since she was 15. She continues to be recognized for being one of the top all around dancers on the east coast.

Graduate of North Carolina School of the Arts where she trained under the direction of Nina Danilova, Melissa Hayden, and Frank Smith. Nina began her training at Greensboro Ballet with Maryhelen Mayfield, John Dennis and Elissa Fuchs. Nina has spent summers at the Boston Ballet and Richmond Ballet. As an NCSA alumni, Nina spent two summers with Rick McCullough for the Manteo Summer Festival, performing at Roanoke Island. Nina currently is a professional dancer with the Greensboro Ballet and also teaches in their school.

Competitive Experience: Advanced gymnast in N.C. Competed locally, regionally and nationally, placing in all. Earned full gymnastics scholarship to attend UNC-CH. Top gymnast for them, after injury competing on Bars and Beam. Placing multiple times in college states and regionals.
Coaching experience: Has coached for 47 yrs. Coached ages 2 ½ to adult, beg. recreation to advanced competitive levels.
Has coached at Olympians, John Roethlisberger and John MacCready’s Flip Fest Summer camp in TN for 8 yrs straight as a paid coach working with Intermediate and Advanced level groups.
Education: Earned B.A. in Studio Art, minoring in History with high honors from UNC-CH. Member of the Golden Key Honor Society and Phi Beta Kappa.
Taught Pre-school for nine years.
Loves children and loves gymnastics.
Guest Clinician for Hillsborough Cheer, Dance and Gymnastics- Has done guest tumbling workshops and privates for last two years.

Marie Rouser began dancing under Jo-Ann Stevens in Durham, NC. She graduated from Belhaven College (now Belhaven University) in Jackson, Mississippi in May 2007 with a Bachelor’s of Science Degree in Business Administration and a Minor in Dance. There, she studied under Cynthia Newland, Laura Morton, Britta Wynne, Stephen Wynne and many others. She volunteered as a counselor for the USA International Ballet Competition Dance School in 2006 and 2010. Marie owned and operated her own dance studio in Hillsborough for 7 years then taught at Arts Alive in Burlington for several years before becoming their interim director in 2016. Over the years, she has taught ballet to a handful of ice skaters. She planned and choreographed many dances for herself and others throughout her dancing career and led dance/worship arts ministries at local churches. Marie is passionate about teaching dance and making sure children, teens and adults learn correct ballet technique to help them excel as a dancer.

Kenzie is a former level 9 gymnast. She has learned a learned a lot along the way— safe execution of drills and the skills they turn in to. Kenzie enjoys sharing her love for this sport with the girls she coaches & can’t wait to see their growth & improvements!