Yuehwern Yih

Overview

Yuehwern Yih is a Professional Ballroom Dancer, coach, choreographer, , adjudicator, and Chair of judges. She is a certified adjudicator under the World DanceSport Federation (WDSF) in International Style Latin and Standard. She is also a Championship Certified Adjudicator with the North American Dance Teachers Association (NADTA) and USA Dance in both of the International Styles (Latin and Standard) as well as in American Rhythm and American Smooth. Yuehwern is a certified scrutineer with the National Dance Council of America (NDCA) and a certified Chair of Judges for both (WDSF) and USA Dance.

In addition to judging and choreographing, Yuehwern and her partner, Daniel Dilley, spend most of their time being the head coaches of the Purdue Latin & Ballroom Dance Team. In 2010, when the Team was invited to compete on Season 10 of Dancing with the Stars on Fox TV, Dilley and Yih coached the dancers to a 1st round victory, and placed second in the Collegiate Formation Team competition at the finale.

Career as a Dancer & Instructor

Yuehwern was a finalist in many Professional events and a runner-up in various USA DanceSport Championships throughout a span of 15 years. Throughout her dancing career, Yuehwern was always fascinated by the dynamics, intricate synergy and kinetics between partners in competitive Ballroom Dancing. She is passionate about learning, teaching, and helping students find their pathways to success on and off the dance floor.

Yuehwern founded the Purdue Latin & Ballroom Dance Team in 1996. Today, this team is not only ranked highly nationally, but is also the incubator of many DanceSport competitors, professionals, and lifelong dancers. Each year, Yuehwern organizes the "Purdue Ballroom Classic", which has attracted more than 400 collegiate competitors from over 20 universities in the Midwest area in the last two decades.

Yuehwern studied ballet and performed with the Lafayette Ballet Company before learning Ballroom Dance. In addition, she completed her B.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Industrial Engineering, specializing in operation management and system engineering. She is currently a Full Professor in Industrial Engineering at Purdue University and the Associate Director of Regenstrief Center for Healthcare Engineering.

Accomplishments

• Over 20 years of dance experience
• Finalist of many Professional events
• Runner-up in various USA DanceSport Championships
• Head coach of the Purdue Latin & Ballroom Dance Team which competed on season 10 of Dancing with the Stars
• Founded the team over 20 years ago (in 1996)
• Team is not only ranked highly nationally, but also the incubator of many DanceSport competitors, professionals, and lifelong dancers
• 3-time USA Dance National Amateur Rhythm Runner-Up (2007 - 2009)
• Heartland Classic Amateur Rhythm Champion (2008)
• 2-time Windy City Open Amateur Rhythm Champion
• Studied ballet and performed with the Lafayette Ballet Company

Dance Partners

• Daniel Dilley (1998 - 2014)

Entrepreneurship

• Certified Chair of Judges with WDSF
• WDSF "A" Licensed Adjudicator
• Standard
• Latin
• Absolute Judging System
• Certified Chair of Judges with USA Dance
• USA Dance National Certified Adjudicator (A+B+C+D+)
• North American Dance Teachers Association (NADTA)
• Championship Certified Adjudicator
• Certified Scrutineer
• National Dance Council of America (NDCA)
• Purdue Ballroom Classic Competition, Co-Organizer
• Purdue Latin & Ballroom Dance Team, Founder, Head Coach