Following the 12th-annual NOVAdance marathon on March 29, it has been announced that the new co-Executive Directors for the 2025-26 school year will be Grant LeMay and Annie O’Brien.
The pair has been on committee since their sophomore year, and have experienced the ins and outs of planning and running year-long fundraising efforts, as well as the day-of itself. Though the marathon was only a few weeks ago, the organization is already gearing up for a year of fundraising.
LeMay previously served as a color captain of the Morale Committee. These responsibilities included getting the student body more involved, leading a color team to success for day-of, as well as engaging in an impressive push-up competition to raise money for the kids.
From here, he went on to serve on the executive board this past year as the head of HR. This position put him in charge of several subcommittees, including the leaders of sidekicks, engagement coordinators, MOCO and others. As a member of the executive board, LeMay worked in a team to take a greater leadership role in executing the day-of and yearlong efforts.
O’Brien was a member of the logistics team, and this past year served as the chair of the operations team. The operations team, or “ops,” is the driving force behind several events, organization of materials year-long and the day-of set up.
This year, members of the team could be seen around Jake Nevin leading decorations and set up, running check-in and making sure the events flowed smoothly. This work required long hours of dedication and incredible commitment to the cause.
“After being here for three years, and getting to see the incredible growth that NOVAdance has had, there is such a bright future for the organization,” O’Brien Said.
This past year, NOVAdance 2025 (“So No Hero Rides Alone”) saw immense increases in participation and incredible success. This has followed a trend of growth since the organization’s start on campus back in 2013.
This past year’s Co-Executive Directors Lanie Aires and Jack Doolin established the “road to 7,” a slogan to showcase the pair’s goal of breaking $700,000. Through the hard work and leadership of the committee, this goal was accomplished.
The pair is embarking on their leadership following an immensely successful NOVAdance day-of. This year, the organization met their goal of breaking the $700,000 goal. Last year, the total revealed at day of was $600,000, a $100,000 raise since the year before that.
“NOVAdance has provided such a sense of community to so many, and we cannot wait to grow this community in 2026,” LeMay said.
Coming off of such success, LeMay and O’Brien are excited to get to work in preparation of NOVAdance 2026. This past weekend, they spent time at the University of Delaware’s UDance Day Of, a fellow organization of the Andrew McDonough Be Positive Foundation.
As co-Executive Directors, both LeMay and O’Brien will be taking on a big leadership role to ensure that NOVAdance 2026 is equally as successful. Within the coming weeks, NOVAdance executive positions will also be decided along with the committee. This summer, the NOVAdance committee will resume its hard work.
