McElligott School of Irish Dance

Director Heather McElligott Sparks, T.C.R.G., started dancing at the age of 18 and within a year became a champion dancer with the Maoileidigh School. In the next 2 years she reached the highest dancing level of Open Champion, and competed at the Regional and National level. Throughout her dancing career Heather has had the opportunity to perform with the Chieftains, Wolfe Tones, and Irish Rovers, which she loved. She has also performed on various TV shows, for international dignitaries, festivals, parades, weddings, and many other exciting opportunities. She also began assistant teaching under the tutelage of Doireann Maoileidigh-Hoy. Upon retiring from the competitive arena Heather decided to take her certification exams to become a qualified Irish Dance instructor. She established the McElligott School of Irish Dance in 1994 in Phoenix, Arizona. During that time many of her dancers reached Champion status and danced numerous times at the World Championships. In 2004 Heather moved with her family: husband Erik and their 2 daughters Keara and Ashlyn, to Stroudsburg, PA, where she reopened her school. She also started classes in Claremont, NH.

Heather is devoted to passing on her deep love of this beautiful form of dance to each and every dancer in the McElligott School. Heather uses her expertise and gentle encouragement to help each and every dancer reach their personal best. Whether a dancer is learning for fun or trying to reach World Champion status, Heather is devoted to helping them reach their goals. Each dancer's complete personal growth both in and out of the studio is important to her. Teaching teamwork, dedication to a goal, and overall physical health is her paramount goal for all the dancers. Most of all she loves to share her ï¿½Love of the Danceï¿½.

Erin Farley started Irish dancing under Maureen O'Grady at age 12. Within the first two years, she qualified for championship level and competed in regional & national competitions across the United States and Canada. In 2006, she traveled to Killarney, Ireland to compete in the All-Ireland Championships. Erin worked as a student teacher with the O'Grady-Quinlan Academy in Allentown, PA, and has logged in thousands of hours teaching as well as performing on stage with Eileen Ivers, Trinity Irish Dance Company, and countless nursing homes, schools, and community events.

Erin left O'Grady-Quinlan in 2007 and completed her B.A. in English at East Stroudsburg University. She has renewed her love of dance much closer to home and work with the McElligott School of Irish Dance. Erin is proud and thrilled to join the teaching staff at McElligott. She respects and admires the unity and camaraderie among its teachers and strives to help each and every student reach their goals both on the dance floor and off.

Ashley (Hansberry) Potestio loves learning about Irish dancing almost as much as she loves teaching it. At age 6, she started dancing with the Gallagher School of Irish Dance, and in 1994, she competed in her first Mid-Atlantic Oireachtas. Ashley has attained the level of Open championship dancer, and over the years, she has danced and placed well at the Regional Oireachtas and North American Nationals, even traveling to Ireland for the All Ireland Dancing Championships.

In 2008, Ashley graduated from East Stroudsburg University with a double major in English and French, and she is currently pursuing her Master's Degree in French Studies at Montclair State University. Dancing with the McElligott School of Irish Dance has made Ashley discover a new passion for teaching Irish dancing in addition to renewing her interest to continue competing. Though she finds that there is always more to learn, Ashley feels that teaching serves as fulfilling and rewarding, as she can pass on her knowledge and "love of the dance" to the students while also learning from them.

Cara (Hansberry) Ridner started Irish Step dancing with the Gallagher School at the age of 10. After competing for a few years, she qualified to dance at the Open Championship level and competed in many regional, national, and world competitions. She placed in the top 10 in regional competitions and top 15 in national competitions. In 2003, Cara medaled at the All-Ireland Championships in Ennis, Ireland. Cara had the honor of qualifying for the World Championships in Ireland in 2000 and recalled in the top half of the world in 2005 and 2006.

Cara also worked as a student teacher with the Gallagher School for over 5 years. She had the opportunity to dance on the same stage as the band Celtic Cross, Daniel Oï¿½Donnell, and Eileen Ivers. Cara has danced at numerous nursing homes, schools, weddings, and community events. After receiving a B.S. in Elementary and Early Childhood Education from East Stroudsburg University, Cara took a break from dancing to become a 2nd Grade teacher for the East Stroudsburg School District.

In 2008, Cara renewed her ï¿½love of the danceï¿½ with the McElligott School of Irish dance. She is very enthusiastic about joining the teaching staff at McElligott. She is prepared to help each student reach their goals on and off the dance floor and build lifelong friends.