VANCOUVER, Wash. --- Heritage High School dance teacher Kimberleigh Anderson has been named National Dance Educator of the Year by the American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance.

Anderson won Washington Dance Educator of the Year in 2010, qualifying her for Northwest District Educator of the Year in 2011 which positioned her as one of five finalists at the National level.

Anderson was interviewed with the competing finalist in Boston, MA earlier this month and chosen for the prestigious honor of National Dance Educator of the Year.

Kimberleigh Anderson works with more than 180 students at Heritage High School. The school's competitive performance team the Wolf Pack Dance Team, has won many awards over the 11 years she has served as coached.
 

VANCOUVER, Wash. -- Drawing from a collection of more than 600 poems, one Washington student will memorize, prepare, and recite his or her way to the national Poetry Out Loud finals in Washington, D.C.

The Washington State Arts Commission announces Washington State’s participation in Poetry Out Loud: National Recitation Contest. This competition, presented in partnership with The National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation, is part of a national program that encourages high school students to learn about great poetry through memorization and recitation.

On Feb. 2, students from schools in Clark, Skamania, Klickitat and Lewis counties participated in the Poetry Out Loud Southwest Washington Regional Finals. The competitions took place at Educational Services District 112, located at 2500 NE 65th Ave, in Vancouver.

VANCOUVER, Wash. – Washington State University Vancouver’s department of English is offering a Professional Writers Series January – March featuring five noteworthy Northwest writers. The series is ideal for anyone looking to get a new sense of purpose and direction in their own writing. Each installment of the series will include writing prompts and exercises along with the main lecture. All events will be held from 7–9 p.m. in the WSU Vancouver Library, room 264.The series is free and open to the public.

Throughout the years, WSU Vancouver has hosted award-winning novelists, poets, screenwriters, essayists and memoirists.

"There are a wealth of terrific writers in the Northwest and narrowing down choices of who will be selected to make presentations can prove challenging. I look for both established and emerging authors who are devoted to their craft, possess a certain candor that will help those who aspire to literary careers, and can rally even the least optimistic of us to achieve our goals and ambitions," said Howard Aaron, an English professor at WSU Vancouver and coordinator of the Professional Writers Series for the last five years.