Our HISTORY

The Regan Academy of Irish Dance was founded in September of 2004 by Katie Regan-Donovan. It began with twenty-five beginner students dancing out of the Shamrock Club and the Hilliard studio. Throughout the years, the school grew larger and larger with her students performing at numerous events around Ohio including the Dublin Irish Festival. Katie trained her students to compete in Irish dance at regional, national, and world levels.

Katie Regan-Donovan introduced a new teacher and partner to her school in March of 2008. Nicole Rankin-Lindsay made the decision to join the Regan Academy to live out her dream of teaching with Katie. The two grew up dancing together and had always said that they would open their own school one day.

In August of 2012, Katie and Nicole welcomed Caitlin Holland to their teaching staff. Caitlin grew up dancing with Katie and Nicole and couldn’t wait to begin teaching with them. In August of 2014, Caitlin’s brother, Michael Holland, joined the team and a year later the school became the Regan Rankin Holland Irish Dance Academy. In 2022, after 18 years of Irish Dance, Katie made the tough decision to retire from teaching to spend more time with her family, and our name officially changed to Rankin Holland Irish Dance Academy.