Housing Information

Housing is offered on a first-come, first-served basis, as demand exceeds capacity. The residence fee includes daily transportation to and from the PNB studios and three full meals per day.

2023 Residence Cost: $4,130

PNBS provides safe, supervised housing for Summer Course students ages 12–18 in Levels IV through VIII. The Residence is a secure building located on the picturesque campus of Seattle Pacific University in a quiet residential neighborhood approximately 1.5 miles from PNBS. We are the only group occupying the Residence. Cable TV and wireless internet access are provided. Other features include a comfortable main lounge with grand piano, a theater-style TV lounge with big-screen TV, separate lounges and kitchenettes with refrigerators on each floor, a large, well-equipped laundry room, and an ice machine. Daily transportation to and from the Residence and PNB studios is provided. Nutritious meals are served in SPU’s Gwinn Commons cafeteria, with daily vegetarian options, and vegan options available upon request.

The Residence is staffed by experienced adult counselors who live on-site during the entire 5 weeks to ensure a safe, congenial atmosphere and individual attention given to all residents.

The Residence’s location in a thriving, world-class city is a tremendous asset for Summer Course students. Seattle is surrounded by water and mountains, providing daily photo opportunities with seagulls, bridges, ferryboats, and snow-capped peaks. Public transportation continues to be available in the city, and students will be able to explore the city (masked at all times) via walking and/or Metro Transit (bus). Just up the hill from campus is a village-like avenue with coffee-shop and eateries. Other neighborhood attractions within walking distance of the Summer Residence include the Lake Washington Ship Canal, and the Fremont neighborhood, featuring public art and local boutiques.

David Jensen (he/him) is Pacific Northwest Ballet School’s Summer Residence Director. This will be his 29th year with the PNB Summer Course. Dave grew up in Olympia, Washington, and earned his B.A. in English and Master in Teaching from the University of Washington. He has been a public school teacher for 23 years; he taught high school for ten years before moving to his current position as an English language arts teacher at Tillicum Middle School in Bellevue, Washington, in 2010. He has been a member of the Summer Residence staff since 1995 and has also served PNB School in the roles of Registrar and Eastside Administrative Assistant. In addition, Dave is one of our Summer Residence bus drivers and holds a commercial driver’s license with all required endorsements.

Patrick Cho (he/him) serves as PNB School’s Assistant Residence Director and is returning for his 18th summer at PNB. 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 a year off to travel domestically and abroad, he will be returning to the classroom to teach elementary school in the Tacoma public school district. 

Nicole Brown (she/her) received formal training at Ballet Royale Minnesota under Denise and Rick Vogt. She has danced in various professional companies in the Twin Cities, including St. Paul Ballet, Ballet CoLaboratory, Hatch Dance and Honeyworks. While maintaining her career as a dancer Nicole has also enjoyed teaching and choreographing for local studios in Minnesota. She is currently wrapping up her first season with Ballet Fantastique in Eugene, Oregon and looks forward to her first summer as a PNB Residence Counselor!  

Katie Connell (she/her) 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. 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 is currently an apprentice dancer with the Central Illinois Ballet. She is looking forward to joining the Residence team at PNB this year! 

Rebecca Cornett (she/her) grew up in Coral Springs, Florida. She started 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 nine seasons with the company and three years as a teacher and coach at St. Louis Ballet School. In St. Louis, she has had the opportunity to perform the title roles in Romeo and Juliet, Swan Lake, Alice in Wonderland, and Cinderella as well as other principal roles and ballets. She is looking forward to coming back to Seattle for her second summer as a Residence Counselor.  

Ezra Dickinson (he/him) is an accomplished artist and dancer originally from Washington state. This will be his 16th year working as a PNB Summer Residence Counselor. Ezra trained at Pacific Northwest Ballet for twelve years on a full scholarship, and 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. Currently, Ezra is working on “Stories From The Streets,” an interactive walking tour set in Seattle. This GPS-guided tour features interviews with the houseless, augmented reality, sound, performance, and installations. Funding for this new work is being provided by 4Culture. Ezra has created original works in choreography, film, sculpture, activism, murals, paintings, and movement installations that are on display around the world. For more information, visit ezradickinson.com. 

JonMarie Rose Johnson (she/her) began her dance training at The Louisville Ballet School and graduated from Sacred Heart Academy. She studied under teachers including Robert Curran, Mikelle Bruzina, Uwe Kern, and Helen Daigle. She has attended summer intensives with Louisville Ballet, Pacific Northwest Ballet, Atlanta Ballet, Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, and Nashville Ballet. JonMarie is also a 2017 alumna of The Kentucky Center Governor’s School for the Arts and was a member of Regional Dance America Southeast for five years. In 2021 she had the opportunity to work for Brenau University as the Head RA for their annual Summer Dance Intensive. In 2018 she was accepted into The University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM) and has graduated with her BFA in Dance Summa Cum Laude. She trained with Nashville Ballet in their Professional Training Division and has graduated from the Louisville Ballet Studio Company. JonMarie is thrilled to return to PNB as a second-year Residence Counselor!  

Tarique Logan (he/him) is a Richmond, VA native who started his ballet career at Richmond Ballet and graduated from Appomattox Regional Governor’s School for the Arts and Technology with a focus in dance. He has trained under Malcolm Burn, Igor Anotonov, Starrene Foster and many others in his time there. He has also had the opportunity to experience collegiate dance with Virginia Commonwealth University before being accepted in Louisville Ballet’s Studio Company. He has spent the past two seasons with Louisville Ballet in the Studio Company, where he has had the opportunity to work with Phillip Neal, Adam Hougland, Ching Ching Wong and Lavelle Smith. This will be his first summer as a Residence Counselor with PNB.  

Antonio Lopez (he/him) began his dance training in his hometown of Albuquerque, New Mexico. He attended various summer intensives such as Joffrey NYC, Walnut Hill, CPYB and Alonzo King Lines Ballet. His formative, two-year training at CPYB led him to start his professional career in the Twin Cities of Minnesota while also teaching within and around the Twin Cities for three years. He currently looks forward to his fourth season as a company member with Eugene Ballet and is thrilled to experience his third year as a Residence Counselor with PNB this summer!   

Siobhan Nickell (she/her) began her training in a small recreational ballet school in her hometown of Dayton, Ohio. From there she transitioned through several schools including Dayton Ballet, The Washington School of Ballet, and finally to Cincinnati Ballet where she was a trainee under the direction of Sarah Hairston for the three seasons. After years of training in various trainee programs as well as attending many different summer intensives, including The Rock School for Dance Education, Washington Ballet and Cincinnati Ballet, she is very excited to be going into her second season with Eugene Ballet as well as joining PNB for her first summer as a Residence Counselor! 

Rebekah Pearson (she/her) grew up in Atlanta, GA, studying ballet, modern, and Irish dance. She earned a B.A. in Dance and in Religious Studies from the University of Alabama in 2022. Rebekah is currently pursuing her Doctorate of Physical Therapy (DPT) at Pacific University in Oregon. In her time at the University of Alabama, Rebekah performed in numerous works of productions of Alabama Repertory Dance Theater, Dance Alabama!, Dance Collections, and Dance Alabama Film Festival, additionally presenting her own choreographic works in Dance Alabama! and Dance Alabama Film Festival. She has competed at the regional, national, and international levels in Irish dance, most notably winning, with her team, the World Title in 2016 as part of a 16-Hand Figure Choreography team. She continues to pursue opportunities in Ballet and Irish Dance extracurricularly. Rebekah is very excited to spend her summer serving as a first-year Residence Counselor with PNB. 

Gabrielle Savka (she/her) grew up in Mansfield, Ohio and began her dance training in Ashland, Ohio. She has attended summer intensives at Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, BalletMet, and Louisville Ballet. In December 2022 she graduated from The University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music Summa Cum Laude with her BFA in Ballet. She is currently a member of Louisville Ballet’s Studio Company. This is her first summer on the PNB Residence staff.