Who we are

As of the 2025-26 season, the Indiana High Dance program has four teams - IHS Dance Spirit Team, IHS Dance Competition Team, IJHS Dance Spirit Team, and the IJHS Dance Competition Team. Both of the competition teams welcome dancers from all across Indiana County. At this moment, we have 34 dancers a part of our program! Head Coaches Lauren Berezansky and Grace Cryblskey and Assistant Coaches Lizzie Kinneer and Kiersten Gardner lead these teams.

Since dance is not part of the PIAA, we operate independently and differently from typical school clubs or sports teams in Indiana County. Indiana Area Senior High School graciously provides us with practice space throughout the entire season. We appreciate both Sue Hewitt Dance Studio and Sharon’s School of Dance & Gymnastics for training our dancers, providing additional practice space, and supporting our program. Thank you to the IHS Dance Boosters and the Indiana Area Education Foundation who help financially support us!

A group of twelve young female dancers and two coaches posing in front of a large screen with 'NDA' and a stylized figure. The dancers wear matching black and flame-themed costumes, and the adults are in casual clothing.
A group of dancers in red and black uniforms with 'IHS' on the front, holding red pom-poms, kneeling and standing on a basketball court in a gymnasium with red bleachers behind them.

IHS Dance Spirit Team

The IHS Dance Spirit Team began as the IHS Dance Team in the fall of 2006. These dancers traditionally perform at IHS Varsity Boys’ Basketball games and IHS Varsity Girls’ Basketball games throughout the winter season. It is sometimes considered a club and sometimes considered a sport at the school level. Before Christmas Break, the dancers also perform at the IHS Variety Show for the Teddy Bear Fund Drive. In more recent years, they have also performed at East Pike Elementary School and Ben Franklin Elementary School.

As invited, the IHS Dance Spirit Team also performs at pep rallies and community performances. In the past, they have performed at various Indiana Area Education Foundation (IAEF) events, the Raising Cane’s of Indiana, PA Grand Opening, and IRMC Park Saturday performances sponsored by Romeo’s Pizza. This team is included in multiple IHS Lip Dubs and even creates and teaches an IHS Boys Dance Team to perform at various school events throughout the year. During the winter this team also hosts a Kids’ Clinic where dancers from kindergarten to 12th grade have been invited to learn from the team and perform with them at halftime of a Varsity Basketball game.

This team is comprised of the 17 highest scores from tryouts that occur every April. Styles for this team include jazz, pom, kick, and hip hop. Tryouts typically consist of learning a jazz and/or pom routine and a kickline routine. By the end of the weak dancers are evaluated in random groups of four by a panel of 8 anonymous judges who have no affiliation to any dancers getting scored. The coaches are involved in teaching the material and running tryouts, but are not judges, so no bias is involved in scoring. All dancers have to tryout for future seasons as you are not guaranteed a spot on the team each season.

Six young women in matching black costumes with rhinestones and feather trim, standing inside a gymnasium with purple and yellow bleachers for a dance competition.

IHS Dance Competition Team

The IHS Dance Competition Team emerged during the winter of the 2023-24 IHS Dance Team season. A formal IHS Dance Competition Team was formed at tryouts the following year for the full 2024-25 season. This team is not directly affiliated with IHS, but they help provide practice space for the team. All dancers from Indiana County are permitted to join this team. All funding is provided through payments from the dancers’ families or their own fundraising efforts. Although the IHS Dance Team Coaches lead this team, it functions as a separate entity from the other teams and are led on a volunteer basis.

This team performs at both dance team and studio competitions, as dance is not formally recognized as a sport and organized by the PIAA at the state level. This team is a great introduction to competitive dance, as studios in the area are just recreational. This team has traveled to compete in locations such as Plum, PA, Wheeling, WV, Bridgeport, PA, and Orlando, FL. The IHS Dance Competition Team plans to attend more conventions and studio competitions in the future, as they are more developed and local than dance team competitions in the region. The creation of this team helped the idea of the Indiana High Dance program emerge.

Group of young dancers wearing red and black uniforms with silver and black and red pom-poms, kneeling and standing in front of a Christmas decorated background with a Christmas tree, snowman, and banners that read "Merry Christmas".

IJHS Dance Spirit Team

The IJHS Dance Spirit Team was formally created during spring tryouts for the 2025-26 season. These dancers traditionally perform at a few IHS Boys’ 9th Grade Basketball games throughout the winter season. It is sometimes considered a club and sometimes considered a sport at the school level. Before Christmas Break, the dancers also perform at the IHS Variety Show for the Teddy Bear Fund Drive as well as East Pike Elementary School.

As invited, the IJHS Dance Spirit Team also performs at pep rallies and community performances. In the past, they have performed at various Indiana Area Education Foundation (IAEF) events, the Raising Cane’s of Indiana, PA Grand Opening, and IRMC Park Saturday performances sponsored by Romeo’s Pizza.

This team is comprised of all dancers from the tryouts that occur every April. Styles for this team include jazz, pom, kick, and hip hop. Tryouts typically consist of learning a jazz and/or pom routine and a kickline routine. By the end of the weak dancers are evaluated in random groups of four by a panel of 8 anonymous judges who have no affiliation to any dancers getting scored. The coaches are involved in teaching the material and running tryouts, but are not judges, so no bias is involved in scoring.

Three young girls dressed in matching blue costumes standing arm-in-arm in a gymnasium with purple and yellow walls, hardwood floor, and basketball hoop in the background for a dance competition.

IJHS Dance Competition Team

The IJHS Dance Competition was formed at tryouts formally for the full 2025-26 season. This team is not directly affiliated with IHS, but they help provide practice space for the team. All dancers from Indiana County are permitted to join this team. All funding is provided through payments from the dancers’ families or their own fundraising efforts. Although the IHS Dance Team Coaches lead this team, it functions as a separate entity from the other teams and are led on a volunteer basis.

This team performs at both dance team and studio competitions, as dance is not formally recognized as a sport and organized by the PIAA at the state level. This team is a great introduction to competitive dance, as studios in the area are just recreational. This team has traveled to compete in locations such as Plum, PA, Wheeling, WV, and hopes to attend more competitions. The IJHS Dance Competition Team plans to attend more conventions and studio competitions in the future, as they are more developed and local than dance team competitions in the region, especially at the junior high age level.

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