Glenwood Dance Studio is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization fostering a warm and welcoming community of dance based in the Glenwood Arts District in Rogers Park.

The studio was founded in 2013 by a group of adult dance students who wanted to have dance classes in their neighborhood. Day-to-day operations are handles by a core group of volunteers who are also students at the studio. Classes are taught by dance professionals who are paid a competitive wage.

If you are an adult seeking a place to take your very first dance class or are an adult who danced as child and are looking to rediscover your passion, Glenwood Dance Studio is the perfect place for you.

We offer a wide variety of classes to give our students a chance to learn about different types of movement. We make it a point to welcome any dancer at any level, and our teachers are adept at adjusting classes to highlight different talents among their students.

We are proud to offer the unique opportunity for our dancers and students to participate in an annual performance. Most dance studios have an internal company that is able to perform, but at Glenwood Dance Studio, all of our students have the opportunity to show off their hard work at our annual Summer Dance Festival.

Finally, Glenwood Dance Studio provides rehearsal space for dancers and choreographers. Studio rental space is difficult to find in Rogers Park, so we are pleased to offer our space at reasonable rates. Please contact us to learn more.

Glenwood Dance Studio Board of Directors

As a non-profit organization, Glenwood Dance Studio is run by a board of directors. Our board members are volunteers and are responsible for the day-to-day operations of the studio.

Current GDS Board

Sandra Verthein, President. Sandra is one of the founding members of Glenwood Dance Studio and has been on the board since the studio started in 2013. After taking dance classes as a child, she came back to dance in her 40s as a student at Northside Dance Theater. When that studio close she helped found Glenwood Dance studio, and has been taking classes there ever since. Prior to Glenwood Dance Studio, Sandra had experience running a non-profit organization as the co-Artistic Director of Stage Left Theater. She also founded a grassroots political group called Northside Democracy for America, had a career as a civil engineer, and recently started her own business, SJV Financial Coaching, where she helps people as a personal financial coach.

Erin DeWitt, Vice President.  Erin is one of the founding members of Glenwood Dance Studio and joined the board in 2016. (Bio to come.)

Sally Olson, Secretary/Treasurer. Sally started taking classes at Glenwood Dance Studio in 2017, and joined the board in 2023. (Bio to come.)

Kareem Dixon, Member. Kareem started training and performing in the arts in grade school. He then went on to double in Voice and Dance at his performing arts high school, and received a Minor in Dance alongside his BS in Biology with a pre-Veterinary Medicine degree in college. He has won awards for his writing, sang on live television, and can be seen acting and dancing in a music video or two in addition to a couple of films. He has performed internationally in England, at various national venues of note such as The Kennedy Center, and locally at the Roosevelt Auditorium Theatre. Kareem has had the honor of acting as a choreographer, rehearsal director, and/or performer with a number of Chicago-land companies including The Joel Hall Dancers, Chicago Dance Crash, and Alliance Dance Company. The latter connected him to the Northside Dance Studio which is now the home of the Glenwood Dance Studio at which he has been a student since 2018. Kareem is happy to join the GDS board and looks forward to continuing and expanding upon the studio’s creed of being a welcoming community of dance.

Past GDS Board Members

Glenwood Dance Studio could not have grown and thrived without the hard work and dedication of our past board members. 

• Annaleah Tubbin, 2013—2015
• Angela Cooper, 2015—2016
• Rose Mulvey, 2013—2017
• Keeley O’Sullivan, 2017—2019
• Robin Pokorski, 2019—2023