Kathryn Austin, R.D.E.

is theOwner/Director of the Centre for Dance & the Performing Arts, (a full service dance education facility dedicated to whole-child development through age-appropriate arts experiences specifically in dance) and the owner of the dance apparel store, Geared to Dance which have served the West Orange and Lake county communities in Florida for the past 20 years. Ms. Austin has 28 years of teaching experience in the private sector, University, public school system and community education as well as frequent guest teaching, lecture demonstration, artist-in-residence and conference presentations to her credit. Ms. Austin was a contributing writer for the Nationally-distributed magazine, Dancer, authoring the column, Let's Talk Dance, for 14 years before deciding to return to college to pursue her PhD in Comparative Studies. Austin is past editor of Spotlight on Dance, the professional newsletter for the National Dance Association where she served on the Board of Directors during the development of the National Standards for Arts Education. Austin has most recently served on the Board of the National Dance Education Organization as the Director of Publications and in October of 2005, was awarded the Outstanding Dance Educator Award for the Private Sector by this organization. Austin is an active member of several state and national dance organizations and is a frequent presenter and guest speaker at conferences throughout the United States. Ms. Austin is recognized as a Registered Dance Educator, holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Dance Performance from Florida State University and a Master's degree in Dance from the University of Hawaii-Manoa. Ms. Austin is a certified Fellow of the British Association of Teachers of Dancing, coaching over 50 Scottish Highland Dance students and competitors. In addition to her teaching and writing, Ms. Austin is a freelance choreographer having worked for Nickelodeon, Universal Studios - Florida, the Orlando Magic, the Florida Motion Picture Association and various musical theatre productions, including most recently, COMPANY for the FAU Summer Theatre Repertory.  She was also the co-producer of an exciting experimental work this summer entitled, Scaling the Wall which was presented at Florida Atlantic University.
Ms. Austin is extremely active in her home community which is an important element of Austin's personal philosophy and the feeling of "family" within her studio. Ms. Austin is a strong advocate of Cancer Awareness and supports the American Cancer Society through corporate donations as well as sponsoring a CDPA Relay For Life. Ms. Kathryn (as she is known in the community) is a very active member of the First United Methodist Church of Winter Garden. She has three children, Caitlin (19), Matthew (13) and Ryan (10).

B.F.A. Dance Performance (Florida State University)
M.A. in Dance & Theatre (University of Hawaii-Manoa)
Florida Dance Association, Member and Past Board Member
National Dance Association, Member and Past Board Member
National Dance Education Organization, Past Board Member
Dance & the Child International,  Board Member
British Association of Teachers of Dancing, Fellow
Federation of United States Teachers and Adjudicators
International Association of Dance Medicine and Science
Society of Dance History Scholars
National Registry of Dance Educators, Charter Member
Licensed and Certified, Lebed Method Instructor