Rancho Bernardo High’s faculty is ready to dance

By Elizabeth Marie Himchak

Rancho Bernardo High faculty members will be showing off their fancy footwork and moves as they compete in the second annual Dancing with the Teachers.

The talent competition that pairs the school’s Tour De Force dance team members with their teachers will begin at 7 p.m. Thursday, April 3 in the RB High Performing Arts Center, 13010 Paseo Lucido. Tickets are $5, sold at the door.

The contest is a fundraiser for the school’s elite-level competitive dance team that has won national honors. Coach Michelle Jacoby said last year it raised around $1,000 for the program, which went toward purchasing costumes.

Several of this year’s faculty competitors are returnees, including Mindy Bradshaw who included a flip in her award-winning performance. Also returning will be Tristan McCoy, who won the “audience favorite” award, Jacoby said. The latter is voted on by audience members via Twitter during the show, while judges select the first-, second- and third-place finishers.

“They all are different,” Jacoby said of the routines choreographed and taught to the teachers by the dance team members, who join them on stage in costume.

“There is hip hop, ballroom, jazz, ballet, but mostly freestyle,” she said. “We had a really good turnout last year, the teachers had a blast and the kids thought it was hysterical.”

In addition to Bradshaw and McCoy, this year’s faculty competitors are Principal Dave LeMaster and teachers Mike Ball, Richard Deem, Caeli Dunne, Dawn Gamberale, Michael Hamilton, Peter Hawken, Mike Inumerable, Christy Millsap, Marie Morris, Emily Novet, Ben Steelhead and Kurt Trecker.

Teaching them the routines are dance team members Katie Brown, Becca Buddin, Stephanie Carlsen, Katie Christopher, Rachel Claas, Estephannia Colon, Claire Fiorino, Kayla Folts, Amanda Franklin, Ashlyn Kimura, Gabriella Marsden, Sydney Mastrovich, Natalie Nieman, Hailey Price, Teagan Robson, Alyssa Rosse, Brianna Sevin, Sequoyah Tate, Lauren Vild, Holly VonDohlen and Kylie Yamane.

Peter Hawken, RB High’s civics and Advanced Placement government teacher, said he agreed to enter “because it sounded like fun ... and I liked the idea.”

With this being his first year at RB High, he did not see last year’s competitors perform. Hawken said he has no formal dance training, but he does dance at weddings and could already do The Worm dance move.

The students who recruited him — seniors Katie Christopher and Lauren Vild — selected the song “Milkshake” and Hawken agreed to remain in the contest even after they later revealed he would be dressed as a cow.

“I like the idea,” Hawken said of the costume. The girls said they have yet to decide if they will be dressed as cowgirls or milk cartons.

“He’s a cool guy and outgoing,” Vild said about selecting Hawken.

“He’s really serious and intimidating to have in class ... which is why we thought it would be funny to make him look like a cow,” Christopher said.

All three said having students become the teachers and vice versa is a neat experience.

“I’m learning from my students all the time, because I never stop learning as a teacher,” Hawken said.

“We get a closer connection to our teachers, getting to know them outside the classroom, out of their comfort zone,” Christopher said. “Mr. Hawken’s really fun and different outside of class.”

Vild said most of the audience members will likely be students since they want to see a different side to their teachers.