“What people associate with me is dance,” senior Stef Hoffmann said.

Hoffmann is a member of both the Groove and Khuumba dance troupes. She also teaches youth classes locally for Joyce Dance Studios.

“I’m a kind of quiet person, but dance and that kind of expression comes naturally to me,” she said.

Hoffmann began dancing when she was three years old and would continue with dance throughout her childhood. In high school, she danced with the In the Spotlight Dance Company. Then finally in college, she decided that she wanted to take a breather for a while and did not join up with dance at the beginning of her first year. However, seeing Dancefest in her first semester, she decided that she missed her oldest passion too much.

Hoffmann then tried out for several dance troupes on campus and has been a member ever since.

“The people you dance with become family. Even if you sometimes get sick of them in rehearsal,” Hoffmann said.

Recently, Hoffmann also began working with Joy’s Dance Studio in town. She teaches classes for the studio and works with her young students on dance technique and routines.

“It’s a lot of fun. You grow to love the kids and support their work. And then sometimes your students come in from town and actually support you at Dancefest,” Hoffmann said.

Hoffmann in her earlier days with dance was classically trained in styles like ballet, jazz and tap. At Colgate, she has worked with more contemporary dance in Groove and Kuumba.

“Sometimes I think there’s more of a jazz aspect to the contemporary dance,” Hoffman said. “Something about the technique and musicality of it, you know.”

Taking dance from her home roots in Ridgewood, New Jersey to her final Dancefest this Friday, Hoffmann has built up a familiarity with dance that quite unique. It’s become a part of her identity.

“As a Colgate dancer, people just know you love it,” Hoffmann said.