Marissa has been dancing since the age of three and has been teaching recreational and competitive dance since 2012. She grew up studying ballet, tap, jazz, hip hop, musical theatre and contemporary dance. She competed with Charmette Academy of Dance's competition team for ten years. During high school Marissa worked as a performer for Six Flags and more recently in 2015 worked for Walt Disney World as an intern in their Recreation department. Marissa graduated from Webster University in 2014 where she earned her BA in Psychology and a minor in Dance. She was a member of Webster's dance team for three years. In 2018 she earned her Master's Degree in Counseling from Missouri Baptist University. Marissa has been an instructor at Creative Movement Dance Academy since 2017.