Officers & Instructors – Dancing Illini

The Dancing Illini is a registered student organization at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. You may contact our officers collectively via email to dancing@illinois.edu. Learn about becoming an officer or review the list of positions.

Instructors

Janice Vidovic

It is my mission to create a fun, healthy, social, and empowering environment for students of all ages to learn some great moves and techniques as an instructor and the Teaching Chair for the Dancing Illini. I’ve taught ballroom dance courses part-time for the Dancing Illini, Dance Club, Loyola University, The High School of St. Thomas More, and well as dance workshops for hundreds of students in several public schools throughout central Illinois. Additionally, I’ve choreographed ballroom dance scenes for theater groups in Champaign and Urbana, including the Champaign-Urbana Theater Company (CUTC), and several area high schools, and I’ve helped many wedding couples to amaze their friends and family for their “first dance”. My B.S. and M.ED. degrees from the University of Illinois are in the field of Education. Currently, I am a full-time real estate broker and Realtor with Keller Williams Realty, where I help even more people by empowering them with knowledge and resources to realize their goals.

Nicole Cox

I joined Dancing Illini because I wanted to learn new dances and have fun. Turns out, I found a wonderful and hilarious group of people to dance with! I’m an Anthropology graduate student who likes ice cream, the color yellow, and silliness. Come dance with me!

Noyan Cem Sevüktekin

Bethany Ross

Sarah Ackenhusen

2017-2018 Officers

President

Brenda Andrade

Hello, Dancers, I am a graduate student in Chemistry. I’ve been dancing with DI for three years now and I enjoy it tremendously. I look forward to being your president, dancing with you all, and sharing what inspires you to dance.

Vice President

Rachel Rose

Hello there! I am a graduate student in German language and lit. from Corpus Christi, Texas. Joining Dancing Illini has been a great way for me to meet people and make new friends since I moved here. My favorite dances are Cha-Cha and East Coast Swing. I also enjoy dancing Latin in the clubs! I can’t wait to see you at practice sometime soon!

Treasurer

Joseph Lubars

I am a graduate student in electrical engineering from Austin, Texas. I took one class in social dance before I left Austin, and enjoyed it so much that I immediately sought out and joined Dancing Illini upon arriving here in Illinois. Since then, I have had such a great time that helping out and becoming an officer feels like the natural next step! My favorite dances so far are the cross-step waltz and East Coast Swing. If you don’t know what cross-step waltz is, I would love to show you!

Social Chair

Tanja Hodges

Hello, Future Dancers. I am the Dancing Illini Social Chair and my name is Tanja… but you may call me, “Your Serene Highness” – I’ve been trying to convince the club to buy me a tiara, and I think that will help. I am a ‘real adult’ with a day job in HR, but this club has been a part of my life since I was an undergrad. I enjoy reading mysteries, singing vocal jazz, baking cakes, and dancing the night away. One of my all time favorite things is teaching new people that DANCE IS FUN. Seriously. It’s a blast. Come on out and I’ll show you. I am passionate about supporting the DI mission to promote partnered dance and I’ve taught many beginner courses for the club. With me as your social chair, I can promise you the club will sponsor dances, parties, movie nights, and maybe even the occasional road trip.

Photographer/Videographer

Siddhartha Satpathi

Hi, I am a graduate student in ECE from India. I never did social dancing before coming to graduate school. One day, thanks to my roommate, I came to know about Dancing Illini. Since then, I liked it so much that I dance almost twice every week now. Swing and Charleston are among my favorites. 🙂

Faculty/Staff Advisor

Pam Lowrey

I volunteer to be the Faculty/Staff Advisor. It’s not an “official” position, but an important one. [Marina’s input and Brenda seconds: YES, we need Pam because you all probably don’t know how much work she has put in recently with space requests, helping to buy decorations, etc. We definitely need a faculty advisor. ;)] I joined the Dancing Illini because I love music & wanted to meet new people & learn salsa, swing, waltz & other social dances. Plus I needed to get off my butt & move (trust me – it’s more difficult the older you get). My favorite dance so far is swing. I’m also the crazy dog lady of the group.

Car Pool Coordinator