Jennifer August discovered her love of modern dance during her time at Reno High School in the early 1990s when she took a modern dance class at TMCC with instruction in Graham, Luigi and Horton dance techniques. While Ms. Jen had studied ballet; she found modern dance spoke to her soul in a different way: “What I love about modern dance is its form. You may watch a piece of modern dance, and think, 'What does that mean?' What I love is that it might mean something different to you than someone else. Just like a flower may smell different to you than to someone else or a piece of modern artwork or sculpture may mean something different to you than to someone else.”

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​Ms. Jen’s interest in modern dance led her to move to Boston upon graduating from high school to study with Joan Palladino at Dean College where she received her associate degree in dance. It was there she was discovered by the famous dancer/director, Judith Jamison, and was invited to study at the Alvin Ailey School in New York. 

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​Ms. Jen later received her Bachelor of Fine Arts in dance from the University of the Arts in Philadelphia with an emphasis on jazz and modern. Jen danced with the Paradigm Dance Company and the Next Step Dance Company in Philadelphia before she moved back to Reno in 2003 to open the In Motion Studio of Dance and start the Black Rock Dance Company. In 2013, Jen decided to spend more time with her two young daughters and stepped away from directing both the school and the company.