Emerald Holman

Dance has always come naturally to Emerald Holman. At the age of three she began taking dance classes. Since then Emerald has grown in the art form and aspires to become a professional dancer. A dance major in her junior year at Duke Ellington School of the Arts, Emerald also trains at Jones-Haywood School of Dance in Washington, DC.

Last summer Emerald was invited to attend the Alvin Ailey Summer Intensive in New York City with a fellowship/scholarship. In January 2010 she was invited to the Vice-Presidential residence for a reception honoring the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater with Vice-President Joe Biden and his wife Dr. Jill Biden, Ailey company members and selected dance major students from Ellington. In the summer of 2010, Emerald studied at the L’Ecole de Danse de Rosella Hightower in Cannes, France. In addition to her many accomplishments she has been on the honor roll every quarter since her freshman year at Ellington.  Emerald has also served as a student ambassador at Ellington for the Dance Department.

In her community, Emerald volunteers at her neighborhood public library. She is also a part of the Delta G.E.M.S which is a teen mentoring and community service group of the Delta Sigma Theta sorority. Emerald attends Metropolitan Baptist Church where she is an active member of the step team, young people’s choir, teen ministry and dance ministry. Most recently Emerald participated in a community service project connected with the Safeway Feast of Sharing by helping to create over 300 Thanksgiving boxes for those in need. 

As a dancer, Emerald believes that being disciplined is imperative. Being able to focus on a goal and train tirelessly can also translate into one’s school life. “As a high school junior I use the discipline that I have learned in the dance class setting now more than ever before. After a long day at school it takes self-control to go home and complete several hours of homework. I am able to do it because I know it takes willpower to achieve an A in my class or become a better dancer. With discipline comes consistency.”  Emerald likes to quote Saint Francis of Assisi: “Start by doing what’s necessary, then what’s possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible.”