McGinley School of Irish Dance

Teacher Biographies

Lena C. McGinley-Crosier O.D.C.R.N.

Owner/Director McGinley School of Irish Dance

Lena McGinley-Crosier was born in Sligo, Ireland and lived in Carrick-On-Shannon until the age of five. Her family moved to United States in 1982. Lena began dancing, at the age of seven, under the direction of Donny Golden in Mineola, New York. She performed and competed with the Golden School of Irish Dancing until the age of sixteen. At the age of fifteen, along with her two sisters and 100 other champion dancers, Lena performed at Radio City Music Hall with Frank Patterson in “A Great Night for the Irish.” When she left New York, she was competing at the Preliminary Championship level in An Coimisium le Rinci Gaelacha .

In May, 1999, Lena earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Secondary Education, Mathematics from Bloomsburg University and in August, 2004, she earned her Master of Education in Administration from Temple University. Lena taught secondary mathematics in the West Shore School District for seven years.

In January, 2000, The Ceili Dancers, (the original name of the group), were formed with six original members. Under her direction, the school has grown to over 130 dancers.

Lena is a fully qualified teacher (O.D.C.R.N.) with Cumann Rince Naisiunta (Dublin, Ireland), having completed her degree in June, 2007. She is the first American to accomplish this.

Lena is married to William Jay Crosier. They currently reside in Mechanicsburg, PA.

Contact Lena

Annie McGinley

Assistant Teacher McGinley School of Irish Dance

Annie McGinley, the youngest of the three McGinley girls, joined the McGinley school staff in December 2006. Annie was born in Mineola, New York and began dancing at the age of 5 under the direction of Donny Golden. When the family relocated to Hershey, Annie trained under Maureen O'Grady in Bethlehem, PA. She has performed at Radio City Music Hall and Carnegie Hall and competed through Preliminary Championship Level in An Coimisium le Rinci Gaelacha. Since rejoining the McGinley School of Irish Dance, Annie has reentered the competition world, competing in Ard Grad within Cumann Rince Naisiunta.

In December, 2006, Annie earned a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in Business Management with a focus in Music Management from Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee.

Annie brings her extensive experience in theatre and stage performance to the school. In February, 2007, she co-produced with Lena, the McGinley Schools first full theatre show which included over 90 performers. The show was a sold out event!