Meet PNB’s 2026 Summer Course Counselors

Each summer at PNB School, hundreds of joyful ballet students take the halls of the Phelps Center for five weeks of top-tier ballet training, growing friendships, and the beauty of Seattle summer. Our team of Summer Course counselors cares for these talented students and ensures they have tons of fun amidst their technique classes. Dave Jensen, who joins us for his 32nd year, leads that dedicated team. Today on the PNB Blog, meet PNB’s 2026 Summer Course Counselors!

Patrick Cho returns as PNB School’s Assistant Residence Director. He was raised in Federal Way, Washington, after his parents emigrated from Myanmar. Patrick earned his B.A. in Developmental Psychology from Duke University and his M.A. in Teaching from the University of Washington. After taking the 2022-23 school year off to live abroad in Asia, he has now resumed teaching in the Tacoma public school district.

Nadine Barton (she/her), born in California, raised in Miami, Florida; began her classical ballet training with Orlando Ballet and went on to study at Artistic Dance Center of Doral (Miami), Miami City Ballet, Oklahoma City Ballet, Sarasota Ballet, and Cuban Classical Ballet of Miami as a guest soloist. In 2018, she was one of 60 dancers chosen worldwide to study with Nederlands Dans Theater. She then danced professionally with the Alabama Ballet for five years, and another five with the Charlotte Ballet. She has choreographed for Charlotte Ballet I, II & their Academy, Milwaukee Ballet, Terminus Modern Ballet Theatre, Arova Contemporary Ballet, Alabama Ballet, and Alabama School of Fine Arts. Nadine has also ventured into dance film. She now lives in Portugal and has been collaborating with local artists in multidisciplinary performance art and theatre.

What’s your favorite Summer Course Field Trip?
Mariners game or Wild Waves. Both are great for French fries and people-watching.

What new summer movie are you most excited to see?
The Odyssey. Though I still need to see Toy Story 5.

What’s your “must-visit” summer Seattle spot?
Red Arrow coffee in Ballard. Half indoor half outdoor heated patio with lots of plants!

Nicole Brown received formal training at Ballet Royale Minnesota, performing with Twin Cities Ballet in the pre-professional program. She has danced with several professional companies in the Twin Cities, including St. Paul Ballet, Ballet Co.Laboratory, Hatch Dance, and Honeyworks. Since relocating to the West Coast, she has completed two seasons with Ballet Fantastique, appeared as a guest artist with Eugene Ballet, and performs often with the interactive dance company #Instaballet. She has recently ventured into her choreographic side more deeply, and set her original work Offshoot at Texture Contemporary Ballet. When Nicole isn’t teaching, choreographing, or performing, she’s usually happily tucked away at her art desk creating unique collage pieces, including this year’s Residence Staff t-shirt

What’s your favorite Summer Course Field Trip?
The Puget Sound and Lake Union boat tour

What new summer movie are you most excited to see?
Definitely Spider-Man Brand New Day!

What’s your “must-visit” summer Seattle spot?
Probably either Discovery Park or Golden Gardens, anything outside!

Sky Byrd is a graduate of Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet and Pacific Northwest Ballet School’s Professional Division program. Sky has attended summer intensives at Charlotte Ballet, CPYB, PNB, Ballet Academy East, Arts Umbrella, and the Rockettes. She grew up in western North Carolina but now resides in Tucson, Arizona, dancing as a corps de ballet member at Ballet Tucson. While in Tucson, Sky has had the honor of performing works by Justin Peck, Kiyon Ross, Ron Cunningham, Matthew Neenan, Andrea Schermoly, George Balanchine, Margaret Mullin, and Cheiko Imada, and is looking forward to her fifth season in the company. As well as dancing professionally, she is also a teacher to kids ages 3-18 in all different styles of dance. Sky is very excited to return to Seattle this summer!

Katie Connell began her dance training in her hometown of Dayton, Ohio with the Dayton Ballet School, where she was able to dance alongside Dayton Ballet’s professional company. She attended various summer intensives such as Louisville Ballet, Grand Rapids Ballet, CPYB, Orlando Ballet School, and Ballet Tucson. In addition to PNB, she has also had the opportunity to serve as a resident assistant at both CPYB and Orlando Ballet School’s summer programs. She graduated from the University of South Carolina’s dance program in 2022 and has danced professionally with Central Illinois Ballet, and just finished her second season with the Greensboro Ballet, where she also teaches.

Rebecca Cornett grew up in Coral Springs, Florida. She began her ballet training with Magda Auñón at Ft. Lauderdale Ballet Classique and Miguel Campanería at the Hartt School in Hartford, Connecticut, before accepting the opportunity to train at Boston Ballet School and at Pacific Northwest Ballet as a Professional Division student. She is currently a dancer with the St. Louis Ballet and has completed twelve seasons with the company, including six years as a teacher and coach at St. Louis Ballet School. With St. Louis Ballet, she has had the opportunity to perform the title roles in Romeo and Juliet, Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, Alice in Wonderland, and Cinderella, as well as other principal roles and ballets. Additionally, she is working on her bachelor’s degree in Integrated Healthcare Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis.

Ruthie Dalby is originally from Winston-Salem, North Carolina. She attended the University of North Carolina School of the Arts for high school, and went on to college at the University of Utah where she graduated in 2023. After college, she spent one season with the Louisville Ballet and one with Grand Rapids Ballet. She just finished her first season with American Contemporary Ballet in Los Angeles and is excited to continue there. In addition to ballet, Ruthie enjoys acting and writing. She most recently appeared in artist Sombr’s music video as well as his Coachella set.

Ezra Dickinson is an accomplished and sought-after artist and dancer from Washington state. He trained at Pacific Northwest Ballet for twelve years on a full scholarship including two years in the Professional Division, and at Cornish College of the Arts, where he earned his B.F.A. in Dance with an emphasis in choreography. Beyond his work in the arts, Ezra is deeply committed to social justice and community engagement. Ezra has created original works in choreography, film, sculpture, ceramics, activism, murals, paintings, and movement installations that have been shown around the world. For more information, visit ezradickinson.com.

Madeline Diehl is originally from State College, PA. From 2019 to 2022, she attended the Miami City Ballet School pre-professional program, and she was a trainee at Nashville Ballet for one season before being hired as an apprentice at Nevada Ballet Theatre in 2023. After being promoted, she has spent the past two seasons as a company artist with Nevada Ballet Theatre. Madeline has attended summer intensives at Pacific Northwest Ballet, School of American Ballet, Miami City Ballet, Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, and Art Of – Zurich. She has also attended the 2024 Jacob’s Pillow Contemporary Ballet program. In addition to her performing career, Madeline is a certified Lagree and Pilates instructor and teaches throughout Las Vegas. She is passionate about cross-training for dancers and enjoys helping clients build strength, mobility, and body awareness through movement. Madeline has also been a guest ballet teacher at studios across the country. She attends Penn State World Campus as a Digital Journalism and Media major.

Maddy Harpole began her dance journey in Newburgh, Indiana. After competing in the Youth America Grand Prix, she was later invited to train at The Rock School for Dance Education in Philadelphia. Her professional path has included trainee positions with Cincinnati Ballet and New Orleans Ballet Theater, where she has performed classical and contemporary works by choreographers such as George Balanchine and Septime Webre. Maddy is now in her second season as an artist with the Eugene Ballet, where she continues to grow as both an artist and a mentor for upcoming students. Outside of dance, she teaches ballet, fits pointe shoes, and creates social media content for ballet companies. Maddy currently studies Accounting at Ivy Tech College and is thrilled to bring her energy and experience to her second summer as a Residence Counselor with PNB!

What’s your favorite Summer Course Field Trip?
Wild Waves! It’s a great chance to relax and unwind after four busy weeks…and store up some energy for the craziness of the last six days of Summer Course. We’ve gone to Wild Waves every summer for as long as I’ve worked at the dorm (since 1995), and I am so sad that it’s closing for good at the end of the summer.

What new summer movie are you most excited to see?
Tuner. I heard an interview with Leo Woodall on NPR and the movie sounds tremendously interesting. And I always enjoy Dustin Hoffman movies!

What’s your “must-visit” summer Seattle spot?
The University of Washington. As a third-generation Husky, I love spending time on campus. Rainier Vista, Drumheller Fountain (a.k.a. Frosh Pond), the Quad, the Sylvan Theater, and, of course, the Graduate Reading Room at Suzzallo Library, one of my favorite places in the world.

David Jensen (he/him) is Pacific Northwest Ballet School’s Summer Residence Director. Dave grew up in Olympia, Washington, and earned his B.A. in English Language and Literature and his Master in Teaching from the University of Washington. He has been a public school educator for 26 years, beginning with ten years as a high school English and Career and Technical Education teacher before moving to his current position as an English Language Arts teacher at Tillicum Middle School in Bellevue, Washington, in 2010, where he also co-coordinates the Sixth Grade Camp program. He has been a member of the Summer Residence staff since 1995, starting with a summer on the kitchen staff before serving as a Residence Counselor for two summers. He has also served PNB School in the roles of Registrar and Eastside Administrative Assistant. Dave holds a commercial driver’s license and supervises our Summer Residence transportation team, filling in as a bus driver when needed.

Sam Neale is Australian-born and raised. Sam began his career in the USA after attending the Milwaukee Ballet Summer Intensive in 2009 and 2010. He was accepted into Milwaukee Ballet II, where he danced from 2009 to 2012. In 2012, Sam joined Minnesota Ballet, where he danced for eight seasons. He then briefly joined Minnesota Dance Theatre for one season before joining with Eugene Ballet 2022-2026. He performed notable roles such as He Who Summons in Martha Graham’s Dark Meadow Suite, Sugar Plum Cavalier, Hans, Chocolate, and Marzipan in Toni Pimble’s The Nutcracker, appeared in Nicolo Fonte’s Choros, Merman in Pimble’s The Little Mermaid and Lysander in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Sam has also been a guest artist with St. Lucie Ballet, the Miami International Ballet Competition, Ballet Co.Laboratory, Twin Cities Ballet, and Minnesota Dance Theatre.

Caroline Smith is currently a ballet dancer with Eugene Ballet and has spent many summers attending ballet intensives as a student herself. Last summer, she worked as a residential counselor at Boston Ballet, where she loved supporting and connecting with young dancers throughout their intensive experience. Alongside performing, she also teaches ballet and enjoys sharing her love for dance with students of all ages. This will be her first time visiting Seattle, and she is thrilled to spend the summer working at Pacific Northwest Ballet. Outside of dance, she enjoys hiking, listening to music, practicing yoga, and exploring new places. She is excited to meet everyone and be part of an amazing summer experience!

Gillian Yoder (she/her) originally from Jupiter, Florida, trained at Next Generation Ballet and the Colburn School, and spent five summers attending the Pacific Northwest Ballet School Summer Course. She joined Kansas City Ballet in 2021, where she rose through the ranks from the second company to the main company. During her time there, she has performed featured roles including Cupid in Don Quixote, In the Middle, Somewhat Elevated by William Forsythe, First Regiment Leader in George Balanchine’s Stars and Stripes, and the Sugar Plum Fairy in Devon Carney’s The Nutcracker. Alongside her ballet career, Gillian has also worked as a Residence Counselor for both the Kansas City Ballet and Next Generation Ballet summer programs. She is thrilled to return to Seattle this summer!

PLUS PNB School’s Intrepid Bus Drivers!

What’s your favorite Summer Course Field Trip?
The trip to the Paramount and Aquarium 

What new summer movie are you most excited to see?
Michael and The Odyssey

What’s your “must-visit” summer Seattle spot?
Alki Beach by Spud Fish and Chips!

Rodney Smith

What’s your favorite Summer Course Field Trip?
The Paramount Theatre

What new summer movie are you most excited to see?
The Odyssey

What’s your “must-visit” summer Seattle spot?
MoPoP