March 23, 2026 - On November 17, 2025, Pieper High School hosted a Dance/Drill Team Assessment Pilot, with participants from school districts across the state. The Assessment Pilot, a preliminary competition aimed at establishing an evaluation standard across high school spirit programs, was one of many as the Texas Dance Education Association works to get dance recognized under the University Interscholastic League.
PHS Dance Coach Jaqueline Olivares has taken on the role of TDEA Executive Council Secretary to help connect the bridge between school districts, the TDEA office, and the UIL office.
Olivares’ dance experience extends back to when she was a small child, beginning at a local dance studio in her hometown of El Paso. Though her high school did not have a dance program, Olivares performed as a Strutter on the Texas State University dance team. It was during her undergraduate studies that she became interested in pursuing a dance career in public education.
“For the last 10 years I've been in Comal ISD,” said Olivares. “I began as a student teacher and then moved into my first job, and have been here ever since.” Olivares opened the dance program at Mountain Valley Middle School before moving into her role at PHS.
When Olivares is not in the Pieper dance studio, she spends her free time contacting district officials and collecting data that show UIL Legislative Council members how much impact dance has in Texas.
“Having dance recognized under UIL is important to me because it validates and legitimizes what we do, from my own experience as a dancer and now as an educator,” explained Olivares. “It is difficult to see how this issue impacts my students, knowing their sport and art is not considered legit compared to other activities at school.”
The dance program at Pieper is in season year round; from football season in the fall, contest in the winter, showcases and tryouts in the spring, and training in the summer, all while supporting their peers at campus events.
A hurdle preventing the legitimization of dance as a sport is the misconception that what they do is not to the same physical level as the sports they cheer on.
“These students do so much more than just kick and shimmy,” explained Olivares. “If anyone were to attend a dance practice, they would find just how complicated and physically, emotionally, and mentally demanding what we do really is.”
The TDEA Dance Assessment Committee continues to move forward as they work to achieve full UIL sanctioning, creating a new Path to Success for dancers across the state who have dedicated their lives to their craft.
“It has been one of the greatest honors of my life to spend time with the founding members of TDEA and hear their stories from when they would go to the UIL office in the 80s and 90s and advocate for the same endeavor,” said Olivares. “Their hard work provided me with this platform, and I owe it to myself, them and everyone after to keep going.”
Thank you Jaqueline Olivares for your unwavering dedication to creating a dance Path to Success in UIL
Photo Descriptions
- Pieper High School Dance Coach Jaqueline Olivares during practice.
- Pieper High School Dance Coach Jaqueline Olivares coaching a dance routine.