K.T grew up dancing at Riley's as it was her mother, Marion Walsh Riley's dance studio. K.T. continued her dance education at Central Connecticut State University. She studied dance under Catherine Fellows. K.T. has been teaching for over 50 years, and has taken her students all over the states to perform with dancers like Frank Hatchet, Gregory Hynes, and Savion Glover to name a few. Through Dance and her eagerness to give back to the community K.T. shapes her students to be beautiful young adults. If KT is not at the studio you will most likely find her with her three grandchildren Thatcher, Scout, and Vivienne. They keep her busy and young, and she wouldn’t have it any other way!

Brenna has followed in her families footsteps and began dancing at her mother and grandmothers studio at the age of 2 and continued dancing at Riley's until she graduated in 2004. Brenna also studied in the pre-professional program at the Hartford Ballet. Brenna Graduated from Sacred Heart University in 2008 with a BA in Business Administration with a concentration in Management. Brenna was on the SHU dance team all four years. She was captain of the team in 2008 where they took 4th place at NDA nationals in Daytona Beach Florida. After college she joined her mother K.T. Full time at the studio. She currently lives in Enfield with her husband Dave and two children Thatcher and Vivienne. Brenna feels so blessed to be able to carry on traditions and values set forth by her mother and grandmother! Teaching and her family and friends are the joys of her life.

Cassie began dancing at Riley’s at the age of 3. After graduating Cassie traveled all over, living in Florida, Southern California and Portland, Oregon. Cassie moved back to Enfield in 2013 and joined the family business. Cassie took over our financial and administrative roles as well as teaching our Rhythm Tap classes. Cassie and her daughter Scout moved to New Jersey in the summer of 2022. Even though Cass lives a few hours away she is still very much involved in the family business! Cassie enjoys spending time with her husband John, daughter Scout and her very large dog Sarge!

After spending over 40 years in management at S.P. Richards, Paul has retired and continues to work with us at the studio handling all of our banking and financials. Paul’s passions in life include spending time with his family, golfing and his grandchildren.

Megan has been a family member of Riley's School of Dance since 1983 where at the age of three she began taking dance lessons. Megan finished her dance career and graduated from Enrico Fermi High School in 1998. Megan began teaching at Riley's following graduation, this will be Megan's 25th year teaching. Megan has remained committed to the art of dance and has developed a vast working knowledge as she continues to teach gymnastics. Megan is currently employed with the town of Suffield, CT where she can be found teaching kindergarten. Megan and her husband Chris, have three children Jordan, Morgan and Grayson who have all taken lessons at Riley's. For Megan and her family, Riley's has truly become a family tradition.

Melissa began dancing at Riley's School of Dance at the age of three, and continued dancing until graduating from Enfield High School in 2003. Melissa has danced in many performances of the Albany Berkshire Ballet's rendition of The Nutcracker. She has learned from many great dancers, including Gregory Hines and Frank Hatchett. She attended Central Connecticut State University where she was a part of Dancentral and the CCSU Dance Team. Since college, Melissa has been teaching part time at Riley's School of Dance.

Rachel joined the Riley’s family when she was seven years old and her love for dance grew with the help of the wonderful Riley’s village. She began assistant teaching at Riley’s in high school and graduated in 2012. She continued her dance career as the captain of the Westfield State Dance Team, where she graduated in 2016 and holds multiple degrees in education. She continues to grow in her craft and loves sharing her love and passion for dance with all the students at Riley’s! Her and her husband have one son, Colton, who just started dance and is loving every second of it! When she isn’t with her family or at dance you can find her teaching middle school history. For Rachel, Riley’s was her second home and as a child and remains a special place in her and her family’s hearts.

Kate began her years of dance at the age of two at Riley’s School of Dance. Her first lessons were ballet and tap. After a few years of dance she had found a love for Irish step. Around the age of seven Kate began taking Irish step lessons under the wonderful guidance and instruction of Maureen McDonald. After graduating high school in 2006 she returned to join the Riley’s team as an Irish step instructor. She then began her time with The Mulcahy Academy of Irish Dance in the Fall of 2015 to further her Irish Dance education as well as explore the competitive world of Irish Dance. She is a Regional 1st place holder in Traditional Set Dance and Ceili Dancing. Over the years she would attend many workshops to expand her knowledge of Irish step dancing and continues to do so to this day. She has a strong passion for the art of Irish dance and culture, and hopes to share that with all of the dancers that come through her classes.

Taylor began dancing at age two and became a member of Riley's School of Dance in 2003. After graduating in 2013, Taylor continued to dance at the University of Connecticut on the UConn Kickline Team, becoming team captain her senior year. Taylor has been teaching Kickline at Riley's since 2015 and loves continuing to be a part of the Riley's Village!

Caitlin started dancing at Riley's at the age of three and am thrilled to be a teacher now. After high school she got her bachelors in Dance Education from Hofstra University. She currently teaches adult classes, modern and lyrical!

Peg is a Doctor of Physical Therapy with specialties in orthopedics, dance, athletic training, balance and dizziness. She is also a Certified Pain Specialist. Peg is a loyal graduate of UCONN 💙 and has an additional Master’s degree in Exercise Physiology & Sport Performance. Not only a Riley’s alumnus, but Peg’s own children, CJ and Jill, grew up dancing at Riley’s. Her favorite teaching moments are figuring out how to break apart complex movements, and then put them back together to create the perfect sequence of motion.

Jill grew up in Enfield dancing at Riley's. She currently lives in Somers, CT with her husband and daughter. Jill works at Grey Physical Therapy and enjoys bringing the strength and stability work to the dancers as well as some injury prevention.

Riley’s Village Mascot! CODA is a regular at Riley’s Dance Studio. She is actually a working service dog for Peg, who is legally deaf, and accompanies her in her daily life. Her name, ‘CODA’ literally means: Child of a Deaf Adult. Like her predecessors, Whisper and Echo, she can be seen at all Riley events enjoying being part of this amazing village!

Catherine began dancing at Riley's in 2005 and continued dancing there through her graduation in 2020. She is now a member of the class of 2024 at Assumption University where she will graduate with a degree in Secondary Education and History. She began assistant teaching at Riley's in 2016 and has continued to teach after her graduation.

Morgan has been dancing at the studio for about 15 years. She started dancing at this studio when she was 2 years old in 2008. Since then, she has continued dancing here and is now in her senior year of high school at Enfield High. She began helping out with gymnastics classes alongside her mom, Megan, then started assistant teaching jazz and hip-hop classes with Brenna in 2021. She is also now a part-time instructor and plans to attend college in 2024.

Olivia started dancing at the age of 3 and joined Riley’s when she was 4 years old in 2009. From then, she continued her dancing career at this studio up until she graduated in 2023 from Suffield Academy. She began assistant teaching in 2021 alongside K.T. with both ballet and tap classes as well gymnastic class with Megan. She is now also one of our part-time instructors with plans to attend college in 2024.

Pam started dancing at Riley’s at the age of 7. Marion asked Pam and her husband Jim, who went to college for technical directing to help run her shows in 1981. They never left! Pam began working as our main receptionist over 10 years ago. She brings a smile to everyone’s face! She dreads the summers when dance is off and always looks forward to seeing all of our villagers when we resume in the fall! Pam is still helping us not only at the desk, but in all aspects of our studio life and performances.

Bean has been working at the desk for the past two years since her retirement from DCF. She is a lifelong friend of Kate’s, a dance mother and grandmother. We love having Bean at the desk on Mondays!

Lexi danced at Riley’s for about 15 years and graduated from Enfield High School in 2019. She started working the desk freshman year of high school, and her senior year she helped co-teach Friday nights with Brenna. Today, she is still working the desk and wouldn’t want to be anywhere else on Tuesday nights! She loves coming back to dance in the alumni routine for recital with her best friends from the studio. She’s also in her senior year of college at Bay Path University.