Festival Dance Academy has been ​providing quality dance education since 1972​.

Festival Dance offers a diverse range of dance and conditioning courses including classes for dancers of all ages in Ballet, Jazz, Hip-Hop, Lyrical, Creative Dance, Musical Theatre, and Contemporary. Offering supportive, classical instruction by professional faculty and dance majors from the University of Idaho, we also provide a wide array of performance opportunities for students and families. 
​

Festival Dance Academy's main location is in residence at the University of Idaho, and classes are taught in the PEB 212. The studio features a sprung floor covered with Marley. Air is circulated directly from outside and only within the studio. 
​
Festival Dance Academy is a proud member of the National Dance Education Organization. With a strong investment in safety in the classroom, all faculty and staff are CPR and First Aid certified. Many of our faculty have achieved degrees in Dance, Theater, Childhood Education, or are presently studying in the Dance Program at the University of Idaho. ​​

Tim Sievers
Executive Director
​
Tim Sievers, comes to our organization with 25 years of experience in public relations, fundraising, and nonprofit management.  His educational background includes a BA in History and Political Science from Greenville University as well as a Nonprofit Best-Practices Management Certificate from Saginaw Valley State University.
​
Tim has prior experience as executive director of a youth mentoring agency in Montana, during which he also served as president of the statewide organization and as a founding co-chair of a nationwide committee dedicated to advocating for small agencies.  
​
His commitment extends to the entire nonprofit sector as evidenced by his service on the Montana Nonprofit Association's Nonprofit Policy Council, which lobbied the state legislature for policy action on behalf of the nonprofit community, and as a member of the Flathead Nonprofit Development Partnerships, a local nonprofit network, where he served on the program committee and taught workshops on the importance of relationships/alliances for nonprofits and tips and tricks for fundraising success.
​
Tim got his start in the nonprofit world writing grants for a private fund development company, and when the time was right, moved into a working nonprofit as a fund development professional and later CEO.
​
Throughout his career, Tim has received local, regional, national, and international acclaim for his public relations strategies from the Public Relations Society of America (Central Michigan Chapter and East Central District), Communicator Awards, and the MarCom Awards.
​
Tim and his wife, Tracy Lee, reside in Palouse, WA with their three children, two golden retrievers, and one parrot. 

---

Rachel Winchester
Academy Director & Community Engagement Specialist

Rachel Winchester is a choreographer, educator, and filmmaker with a passion for innovative storytelling. She holds both a Bachelor's and a Master's of Fine Arts in Dance. She has had the privilege to teach hundreds of dancers of all ages, including students at the University of Idaho, the University of Oregon, and Pacific Lutheran University. Rachel's choreography has been recognized and presented through the American College Dance Association and the Kennedy Center in Washington DC, the San Diego & Tijuana Mexico International Fringe Festival, Movement Research and Williamsburg Arts Nexus in New York City, and Seattle’s 12 Min Max at Base Experimental Arts. Her films have been featured in 40 North International Film Festival, Idaho Screendance Festival, and ACDA Northwest conferences. Her choreographic research was presented at the 2019 National Dance Education Conference in Miami. Rachel loves working with talented young people. She has been a children’s dance instructor for Festival Dance Academy in Moscow, Idaho and for the American Dance Institute in Seattle, WA. She recently worked as a physical education teacher in Tacoma Public Schools and was a 2022 guest artist for Seattle’s Kaleidoscope youth dance company. Rachel is excited to be back living and working in the Moscow/Pullman area, and to bring her education and experience to the role of Academy Director & Community Engagement Specialist for Festival Dance.

---

Meet our Academy Faculty

Festival Dance Board of Directors

Lauren Goracke, President
Rachal Garrett, Vice President
Sean Meenan, Treasurer
​Liddy Kang, Secretary
Della Bayly, Member
Jennifer Beller, Member
Sharon Stoll, Member