Head dance coach Brooke Parlin advanced to the semi-finals for the annual Texas Dance Educators Association (TDEA) Director of the Year award in the last week of August. Parlin originally received the nomination for the award at the TDEA convention in January 2023 and progressed to the top nine dance coaches in the state of Texas.
Parlin’s former assistant director, Alex Thomas, spearheaded the campaign, but several of her peers nominated her at the Texas state convention last January.
“I was I was just really shocked,” Coach Parlin said. “I did not anticipate that whatsoever, but it was a nice blessing.”
After making it to the semi-finals, Parlin will go through an extensive process to advance to the next round of finals. She must fill out an application, send in a picture, and then give a written summary about her philosophy on dance teams. Once the applications get processed, the board of directors at TDEA will narrow the nine semi-finalists down to three finalists. The three finalists will then be voted on at the next TDEA convention in January 2024 by other dance directors to find out who the award will go to.
“This is a huge honor. It’s huge to be nominated by your peers, and for them to respect what you’ve done in your career,” Coach Parlin said. “This is my twenty-second-year directing, though I started [teaching dance] 25 years ago.”
Although honored to be chosen for this prestigious award, Parlin never set out to receive it.
“You don’t work to get awards, and I never considered that I would ever get an award or be nominated for work,” Coach Parlin said. “That’s not why you do what you do, but it’s nice to see that what you’ve done has impacted others.”
Varsity Drill Team First Lieutenant Kadence Whitfill, 12, has been on the drill team since her freshman year and has a close relationship with Parlin.
“Parlin has helped me by constantly pushing me to be the best [dancer] I can be,” Whitfill said. “She always holds me to a high standard.”
Whitfill admires Parlin’s dedication and describes her as hardworking, focused and patient.
“She has inspired me to become a better dancer. She pushes me to do things that I normally wouldn’t want to do.” Whitfill said.
Coach Parlin has been teaching dance for 22 years and has seen hundreds of dancers meet their potential.
“I love watching how they start as freshmen or sophomores as they enter our program and who they become at the end,” Parlin said. “That transformation for me is the best thing.”
