She holds a Ph.D. in Dance Studies and an M.F.A. in Dance from The Ohio State University, where she completed her doctoral dissertation, "Shapes of American Ballet: Classical Traditions, Teachers, and Training in New York City, 1909-1934," in 2012. As a dancer, she studied with Maggie Black, Rochelle Zide-Booth, and Jan Hanniford Goetz; her article on Black's teaching and pedagogical lineage appeared in Dance Chronicle in 2009. Zeller's research examines the development and genealogy of nineteenth and twentieth century ballet pedagogy, and it explores the integration of progressive pedagogical approaches into modern day ballet classes.