Dance Stomp Shake Ohio is excited to add a new event to its repertoire this year. The local nonprofit headed by Julius Bailey, professor of philosophy at Wittenberg University, will host an area college fair and step show titled Stepping for Scholars - Stomping for Change - A Thanksgiving Greek Step Show on Nov. 22. This Dance Stomp Shake event will take place from 2 to 5 p.m. at the John Legend Theater in Springfield, 700 S. Limestone St.
Students attending the college fair event will have the chance to speak with college representatives, attend panel discussions, and participate in hands-on workshops, as well as listen to live music and watch dance battles. The event includes a food truck, raffles, and giveaways, followed by the Greek Step Show that will begin at 6:30 p.m. An admission ticket is required to attend the step show and can be purchased at www.dancestompshake.org. Wittenberg students can receive a free ticket thanks to University organizations Concerned Black Students (CBS) and Build a Better Wittenberg.
In association with Wittenberg Trio programs, the area college fair is free and open to the public and will include representatives from Central State University, Clark State College, The Ohio State University, Sinclair College, Wilberforce University, Wittenberg University, and Wright State University. Participants will receive help in filling out their college applications and FAFSA forms.
“We want our young people to know that higher education is not a distant dream; it’s right here at home,” said Bailey, who is also the pre-law advisor, director of African & Diaspora Studies, and director of Justice, Law & Public Policy at Wittenberg. “By bringing together our area colleges under one roof, we’re giving students and families the tools, encouragement, and face-to-face connections they need to see themselves as future scholars and change-agents in our area. College isn’t just about getting in; it’s about belonging, believing, and building a future that reflects who you are. This fair is about making that vision real, right here in Springfield, right here in our community.
“This initiative was specifically created to focus our area students to think about our area schools,” he added. “We are planning for 300 youth and families to attend on this day, and we are doing it Dance Stomp Shake style with music, games, giveaways, and more.”
Dance Stomp Shake, a federal tax-exempt 501c3 organization incorporated in Ohio, has a goal of providing programs that promote student leadership and safe spaces for youth entertainment in the Miami Valley and throughout the state of Ohio.
Dance Stomp Shake believes that through mentoring, peer leadership, and team-related arts, young people are encouraged and trained to live positive and productive lives. Its founders believe that the creative arts can play a significant role in reducing depression and suicidal ideations through empowerment and self-expression, catharsis and healing, sense of community and belonging, skill development and education, conflict resolution and emotional regulation, positive role models and mentoring, community engagement and social impact, and prevention and intervention.
Dance Stomp Shake’s main show will take place on Saturday, Feb. 15, 2026, at the Kuss Auditorium inside the Clark State College Performing Arts Center.
“We honor the five-year legacy that earned us the title of ‘THE HOTTEST HIP-HOP SHOW IN THE MIDWEST’, Bailey said. “Yet this year, we’re intentionally broadening our horizon with an international theme, celebrating cultural difference and aesthetic elegance while holding fast to the roots that built us. We invite our community to plan to witness movement and meaning that spans continents, even as we stay grounded in the neighborhood that made us.”
