--- title: "Ballroom at Maryland: The community that kept me sane (and got me a husband!) – Dr. Rowena Briones Winkler" description: "As we've discussed as part of #CuriousCoLab, community takes a variety of different forms. I've been very fortunate to consider myself a member of many different communities, including my academic homes of VCU (as faculty), UMD (as grad student), and TCNJ (as undergrad student). However, something I've discovered over the years is that non-academic/non-work-related communities…" image: https://www.rowenawinkler.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/10460885_10202689024086597_7859587158550877110_o-Oct-28-2020-02-48-22-83-PM.jpg --- [![Rowena Winkler logo](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/hs-fs/hubfs/New-Project-4.png?width=937&height=618&name=New-Project-4.png "Rowena Winkler logo")](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/) Open main menu Close main menu - [Home](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/) - About Open the submenu - [Meet Rowena](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/about-rowena) - [Press](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/press) - [Partnerships](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/partnerships) - [Merch](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/merch) - Services Open the submenu - [Career Coaching](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/career-coaching) - [Astrology](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/astrology) - [Coaching Bundles](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/coaching-bundles) - Community Open the submenu - [Masterclasses](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/masterclasses) - [Free Resources](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/resources) - [Blog](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/blog) Open the submenu - [Letters from My Postpartum Psychosis](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/letters-from-my-postpartum-psychosis) # Ballroom at Maryland: The community that kept me sane (and got me a husband!) [Dr. Rowena Briones Winkler](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/blog/author/dr-rowena-briones-winkler) As we’ve discussed as part of #CuriousCoLab, community takes a variety of different forms. I’ve been very fortunate to consider myself a member of many different communities, including my academic homes of VCU (as faculty), UMD (as grad student), and TCNJ (as undergrad student). However, something I’ve discovered over the years is that non-academic/non-work-related communities are just as important, and can sometimes teach you more about life than you could have possibly imagined, or even find in the more traditional classroom setting. For me, that community is the lovely [Ballroom at Maryland](http://www.ballroomatmaryland.com/) dance team at UMD (AKA BAM). I joined this community in Fall 2011 as a way to find an outlet to release stress while writing my dissertation. Little did I know that I would meet the most amazing people, including my wonderful fiance Derek. I sometimes wonder what my life would have been like if I had never decided to try that free ballroom dancing class BAM offered at the UMD School of Public Health gym almost four years ago. With all of that said, this is exactly what is so interesting/fascinating about community – sometimes you fall into them without knowing what to expect, and you find your life completely changed because of it. 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[Dr. Rowena Briones Winkler](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/blog/author/dr-rowena-briones-winkler) [Read More](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/blog/2018/08/11/this-is-what-happens-when-you-live-right-now) [![](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/17310871_10101150770748239_1657828931_o-1.jpg)](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/blog/2017/03/16/birthday-reflections-this-is-me-moving-forward) [birthday](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/blog/tag/birthday) [dancing](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/blog/tag/dancing) [meditation](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/blog/tag/meditation) [anxiety](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/blog/tag/anxiety) [mindfulness](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/blog/tag/mindfulness) [yoga](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/blog/tag/yoga) ### [Birthday Reflections: This Is Me Moving Forward](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/blog/2017/03/16/birthday-reflections-this-is-me-moving-forward) ## Today is my 31st birthday. For those of you that know me well, you’re probably waiting for a month-long series of events with various activities in different locations. [Dr. Rowena Briones Winkler](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/blog/author/dr-rowena-briones-winkler) [Read More](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/blog/2017/03/16/birthday-reflections-this-is-me-moving-forward) #### About - [Press](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/press) - [Theater Portfolio](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/theater-portfolio) - [Resources](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/resources) #### Services - [Coaching](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/career-coaching) - [Academia](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/academia) - [Astrology](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/astrology) #### Blog - [Postpartum Psychosis](https://www.rowenawinkler.com/letters-from-my-postpartum-psychosis) - [Leaving Academia](https://blog.rowenawinkler.com/blog/2019/06/15/a-confession-letter-to-the-academy) - [Infertility](https://blog.rowenawinkler.com/blog/2019/05/13/striving-for-motherhood-a-struggle-revealed) ### Sign Up for Updates