Jean Kettell Dance Studio was founded by Jean Kettell on her parent’s porch after a May Day celebration at Edgemere Elementary school. Several of her classmates marveled at Jean’s grace and dance ability. They begged her to teach them how to dance. Jean’s father worked two jobs and her mother also worked, but managed to take her two daughters to weekly dance lessons by street car and two buses.
“In those days there weren’t that many dance studios in Baltimore,” Jean explained. “My mother used to dance in her parlor when she was a kid, but her mother didn’t really support dance.”
Jean’s first dance class was made up of six classmates that eventually grew to local neighborhood children. As the class size grew more space was needed. Jean sought out space in church basements and community buildings.
In 1960 Jean Kettell Dance Studio was formally opened, by 1970 the dance studio moved to its current location on Holabird Avenue in Dundalk. The school’s dancers routinely perform for nursing homes, at community events, Heritage Fair, and Kennedy Krieger Children’s Hospital. In addition to these performances, Jean Kettell Dance Studio donates all proceeds from their dance recitals to Children’s Cancer Foundation, inc. and offers free dance lessons to special need students through Dancing Sunshine.
“The kids have a mission. They go to their teacher and are ready to perform for the kids who need help,” Jean said.
The studio performs 20-25 times a year, while the youngest students perform at the Christmas show and two end of the year recitals. 
“We’re an inclusive performance-based studio,” Chrystal Drew, dance instructor, said. Everyone gets a chance to dance.” And that includes the students enrolled through Dancing Sunshine.
Jean Kettell Dance Studio offers everything from ballet, tap and hip-hop to creative movement and musical theatre.
“We love what we do and we thank you for letting us share that love with the Dundalk Community,” Jean said.
