Mary Kozleski, originally from Montana, was a competitive gymnast as a child, but always preferred pirouettes to tumbling. Mary enrolled in several dance classes in college and especially enjoyed studying modern dance. As a college freshman, she was chosen by her instructor to perform the lead in a modern dance showcase. Mary graduated from the University of Colorado with a BA in Communications and emphasis in Japanese. After college, she moved to Japan and studied jazz, contemporary and ballet at the Yayoi Dance School in Fukushima City. She joined the Yayoi Performance Team and had the amazing opportunity to dance in the closing ceremony for Japan’s National Sports Competition hosted by Fukushima Prefecture in 1995. Upon returning to the United States, Mary taught dance fitness classes to adults and children. She loves sharing her passion for dance and music with children and has done so as the choreographer for elementary school musicals, an artist-in-residence for LWSD elementary schools and a preschool dance instructor. When Mary’s dance shoes are on the shelf, she works as a translator for a company in Tokyo and she teaches Japanese Arts & Culture classes to children.