"A student and star of dance"

Colleen Curran ’11 didn’t grow up a ballroom dancer. In fact, she was 18 the first time she waltzed or tangoed. So, she’d never imagined competing for a British national title at only 21—a rare opportunity for an American of any age and background, and one that recently caught the attention of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Dec. 5, 2010), Worcester News Tonight (Nov. 5, 2010) and the Telegram & Gazette (Dec. 24).

A native of Alpharetta, Ga., Curran told the newspaper she was introduced to ballroom dance as a freshman at Holy Cross, when she decided to join the College’s ballroom dance club. During her junior year, she studied abroad at Oxford University in England and immersed herself in the British world of ballroom. Training for 20 hours a week with world renowned British instructor Neil Kelly, Curran competed in several events and won the Latin division in a regional qualifier for the country’s prestigious National ISTD Ballroom Dancing Championships.

Curran returned to England over Thanksgiving to compete the cha-cha and quickstep in the national competition on Nov. 28, where she finished second in the Latin division.

“With ballroom, you have to look like you own the floor,” Curran told the Atlanta-Journal Constitution. “It makes you so much more confident in yourself and makes you present yourself better. If I go for a job or graduate school interview, it’s no longer going to feel so intimidating. You just imagine yourself doing the cha-cha in a crystal encrusted dress and go from there!”

Curran also keeps a blog on the Holy Cross website, which chronicles her college life, including her many academic honors, as well as her year abroad.

This 'Holy Cross in the News' item by Kristine Maloney.