MEET THE STAFF
Sheila Murphy Crawford is the director and founder of the Murphy Irish Arts Center. Sheila is a Certified Irish Dance Instructor and Adjudicator of An Commissum, the world governing organization of Irish Dance. Besides her commitments to Murphy Irish Arts Center, Sheila is very active in the Cleveland Irish Community, the Ancient Order of Hibernians, and the Irish Cultural Gardens.
Maureen Cavanaugh started Irish dancing at the age of 4 with the Masterson School of Irish Dance and transferred to the Murphy Irish Arts Center when her Aunt Sheila Murphy Crawford started the school. She competed in both solos and teams for 30 years, Dance Drama being her favorite. Her last competition was on the World Stage and in the same year she took the exam to become a TCRG. In addition to Irish Dance, Maureen has been employed full time by the Regional Income Tax Agency in the IT Department for over 30 years as a Database Developer.
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Annie Profeta grew up dancing for the Murphy Irish Arts Center. She competed at all major competitions including the Mid-America Oireachtas, North American Championships, and the World Championships. She has toured around the world with several dance shows including Rhythm in the Night, Rhythms of Ireland, Tony Kenny Irish Dance Spectacular, Danceperados, and Rockin' Road to Dublin. She has since stepped off the stage to teach at her original school after earning her TCRG, and she enjoys every minute of it.
Heather Voss Hoynes started dancing with the Murphy Irish Dancers in 1998 and has been around in some way ever since, just ask the kids. Prior to earning her TCRG in 2017, she competed in both solos and teams and was a member of the 2015 World Champion Dance Drama team. Heather will begin her Residency in Pediatric Neuroscience in June 2020.
Erin Hogan has been actively involved with the Murphy Irish Arts Center as a dancer and teacher since she was in first grade. Erin competed at Regional, National, and World levels and was a member of the 2015 World Champion Dance Drama team. Erin also works full time as a high school and middle school youth minister, while taking classes towards her Masters. Basically, she doesn't sleep anymore, drinks a lot of coffee, and loves almost every minute of it.
Eileen Connell has been dancing with the Murphy Irish Arts Center since 1984. She joined the teaching staff in 1998 and currently works with the students in the adult classes. She enjoys choreographing team dances, marching with the dancers in the St. Patrick's Day parade and organizing dancers for performances in the community. Outside of Irish dancing, Eileen is an information technology professional at Case Western Reserve University and an avid tennis player.
Bridget Shirey-Hosey competed with the Murphy Irish Arts Center for many years at the regional, national, and world level. Now, Bridget enjoys teaching at the Willoughby studio.