Meet Our Staff

Katie Quinn
Owner, Competition Team Director, Instructor

​Katie has been dancing since she was a young girl. She is the daughter of a drill team director and grew up in the gym watching and learning from drill team girls and her mom her entire childhood. 

She graduated from Gilmer High School and was a member of the Stars Drill Team for four years and selected as an officer for three years.  After high school, she was selected as a World Famous Kilgore College Rangerette, Swingster, and Captain. Once her time at Kilgore concluded, she attended Texas Woman’s University and earned a B.A. in Dance. Upon graduating college, her first position was a drill team director for the Fossil Ridge High School Sun Dancers for two years. 

​When she arrived back in the East Texas area, she became co-owner of Elite Dance Center in 2010.  

Katie has done extensive performance work at the Dallas Bath House, Dance for the Planet, MAM and Schlecte Dance, and various other performances and residencies and lecture demonstrations around DFW and the country.  She studied with a graduate of the Alvin Ailey School, Melissa Young, in the Horton Technique.  She also served as a college assistant and guest instructor for the TDEA Convention in Houston, Tx.  She was also a performer in the modern company called Out on a Limb Dance Company.

Katie has been a choreographer for the Kilgore College Rangerettes in their annual spring show, Rangerette Revels, multiple times.
Katie is currently on staff with Encore Creative Productions where she instructs many dance camps across Texas.

​Katie is passionate about bringing the art of dance to the East Texas communities.  These communities accelerate her passion in her own experience as a dancer and performer, but also inspire her to share her experience with others. Katie resides in Longview with her husband, Clint, and their four sons, Jackson, Cooper, Charlie, and Hudson.

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Lexie Drennan
Owner, Competition Team Director, Instructor

​Lexie has been dancing since she was four years old in ballet, tap, jazz, clogging, hip hop, point, and modern.

​Lexie attended Lufkin High School where she was a member of the Panther Pride Drill Team.  Lexie attended Kilgore College where she was selected as a Rangerette, Swingster, and Lieutenant.

After Kilgore, she attended Texas Woman’s University where she received a B.A. in Dance.  While she attended TWU, she studied under Sarah Gamblin who was a member of the Bebe Miller Dance Company and Mary Williford-Shade who performed under Mark Dendy.

Lexie currently assists in jazz class with the assistant director/choreographer of the Kilgore College Rangerettes, Mrs. Shelley Wayne.  She has also been a choreographer for Rangerette Revels multiple times.

Lexie has been a studio instructor since 2008 and is currently on staff for Encore Creative Productions where she instructs dance and drill team camps all over the state of Texas.  Lexie has danced in Los Angeles at the Millenium Complex Summer Intensive learning from today’s top choreographers.

Lexie also performed with a modern dance company called Out on a Limb Dance Company.  She is passionate about the art of dance and enjoys introducing her students to different ways to perform, create, and learn. Lexie resides in Longview with her husband, Seth, and their two sons, Brooks and Hayes.

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Megan Holder
Instructor/Competition Team Director

Megan Holder is originally from Garland, where she began her dance studies at the age of 5, and started dancing competitively with her dance company at 9. Former Rangerette Lisa Dalton continued to inspire Megan’s love for dance and drill team during her three years as a South Garland Southern Belle where she served as Captain.
 
After high school, Megan was honored to become a member of the Kilgore College Rangerettes, where she was selected as a member of the specialty Swingster jazz group  and served as a Lieutenant her sophomore year.

Past performances include the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, Cotton Bowl, the Marshall Field’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, and the Indianapolis 500.

At the end of her sophomore year at Kilgore, Megan auditioned and was selected for the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders. She was a member of the squad and the elite DCC Show-Group for four years, and was honored by the DCC Staff when she was chosen to be a group leader for two years.

Megan has performed with many A-list celebrities including Destiny’s Child; Big and Rich; Neil McCoy; Sheryl Crow; Jason Aldean; Carrie Underwood; and Kelly Clarkson. She has performed in Northern Europe, South Korea, Guantanamo Bay, Puerto Rico, Kuwait, Iraq and Japan.

Megan was selected as the DCC representative for the 2007 Pro Bowl in Hawaii where she performed and appeared on behalf of the Dallas Cowboys Organization.

Megan’s television appearances include Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders – Making the Team (2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 & 2009); Queer Eye for the Straight Guy; FOX News with Sheppard Smith;  NFL Thanksgiving Day Halftime National Performance 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006 and Inside Edition, Good Morning Texas, and House Hunters in addition to various commercials. Megan’s most recent television appearances include Dancing with the Stars and Are You Smarter than a Fifth Grader? and Fox & Friends morning news broadcast.
Megan is currently teaching at Pine Tree High School and continues to work with drill teams throughout the metroplex and now in East Texas.  Megan and her husband, Jacob, have two wonderful children, Hannah and Jude.

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Lauren Murry
Instructor

Lauren is a true East Texas girl, graduating from Pine Tree High School and continuing her studies at Tyler Junior College where she became a part of the Internationally Famous Apache Belles.  She served as Freshman Representative and then Head Dance Captain.  She finished her education at Stephen F. Austin State University, graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Dance.

Once finishing her degree, she had the opportunity to serve as the Assistant Director at Marcus High School in Flower Mound with the Marcus Marquettes.  She also began the Junior Varsity Drill Team, the Silver Stars, which she directed for five years. Lauren was also the assistant Director for the Gilmer High School Stars for 6 years.

Lauren has been married to her husband, Jeff, for 11 years and they have three beautiful children together, Lilly, Landry, and Jackson. Lilly and Landry are current students at Elite Dance Center!

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Ashlyn Thompson
​Instructor

​Ashlyn is from Nederland, Texas and grew up training at Keely Jardell School of Dance for 16 years. In high school, she was a member of the Nederland Westernaires drill team, where she served as junior Lieutenant and Captain her senior year.

After high school, she attended Kilgore College where she was a Rangerette on the 80th line. Since graduating from Kilgore College she is now attending The University of Texas at Tyler and graduated with a degree in Kinesiology. 

​Ashlyn has extensive knowledge in dance technique and has a passion for teaching and enjoys helping mold students into confident, young women through the art of dance. She is currently the Director of the Pine Tree Precision Drill Team. 

Ashlyn and her husband Cole reside in Kilgore. 

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Laycen Peralez
Instructor/Competition Team Director

Laycen grew up in Kilgore, TX and began dancing as a young girl. She is a graduate of Kilgore High School where she was a four year member of the KHS Hi-Steppers and served as Lieutenant her junior and senior year.  

Laycen attended Texas State University where she was a four year member of the Texas State Strutters, Jazz Elite Performing Squad, and Pom Squad. While on Strutters, Laycen served as Sophomore Lieutenant, Junior Captain, and Head Captain her senior year. With the Strutters, she performed at Disneyland Paris, the McDonald’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in Chicago, the 2016 Presidential Inaugural Parade, and the 2016 Texas Black Tie and Boots Gala in Washington, D.C. Laycen graduated Summa Cum Laude with a Bachelor's of Fine Arts in Dance. Upon graduation, she moved back to East Texas and began her career at Tyler Legacy High School where she served for three years as the Assistant Director of the Southern Belles Drill Team. In 2020, Laycen began teaching at Pine Tree High School where she was the Director of the Pine Tree Precision Drill Team. She is now back at her alumni and is currently the Director of the Kilgore High School Histeppers. Laycen choreographs and judges for schools around the East Texas area. 

Laycen is married to her high school sweetheart, Hector, and together they have two dogs: Remi and Blaze. 

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Misty Lewis
Office Manager

Misty was born and raised in Kilgore. She graduated from Texas A&M in 2001 with a bachelors degree in marketing. She taught business at Kilgore High School from 2001-2007. After some time away, she came back to teaching Accounting and Marketing in 2019 for Kilgore High School. Her girls Kyleigh (started fall of 2010) and Alyssa (started fall of 2014) both attend Elite Dance Center.

Reagan Wells
Instructor
​Reagan Wells was born and raised in Tyler, Texas. Reagan spent the majority of her time growing up in a dance studio and quickly fell in love with performing, competing, choreographing, and teaching. Reagan danced competitively for Candy Crocker School of Dance for twelve years and began teaching for the studio her sophomore year of high school. In high school, Reagan was on the Tyler Legacy Southern Belle Drill Team and served the team as the Captain her senior year. After graduation, Reagan pursued her dream of becoming a Kilgore College Rangerette and was selected to be a member of the 79th line. While on Rangerettes, Reagan performed in Italy, England, the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, and two Goodyear Cotton Bowl halftimes at AT&T Stadium. She served her line as the class treasurer both years. During her time at Kilgore College, Reagan taught at Elite Dance Center and earned her Associates of Arts in Dance. After Kilgore, Reagan transferred to Texas State University to study dance education. While at Texas State she was the recipient of several scholarships from the dance and education departments. While earning her degree, Reagan taught dance at Illusion Dance Center in New Braunfels, TX. In 2022 Reagan graduated Summa Cum Laude with her BFA in Dance Education. Reagan is currently engaged to her fiancée, Brennan, and is looking forward to becoming Mrs. Moore in November 2024! Reagan loves to inspire and be inspired by her students. She finds great joy in watching dancers explore their artistry, achieve their goals, and gain confidence through dance. Reagan believes that dance offers so much more than performance opportunities, it is a tool that provides discipline and lessons to carry forward for the rest of your life.

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