Students teaching teachers at annual Hillcrest High Dance Competition
While it’s not associated with the hit TV series Dancing with the Stars, Dancing with the Hillcrest Stars is a dance competition where the roles of teacher and student are reversed and the student takes the lead.
“So it’s kind of a competition for the teachers, but it’s also a learning experience,” said Teri Hamelin, the Hillcrest Ballroom team coach. “They’ve (the students) picked a teacher to dance with, and they’re teaching a routine to the teachers. Then they compete it.”
The competition provides not only a learning/teaching experience for both teachers and students, it’s a chance for the team to raise much needed money. “The ballroom team functions by the kids paying fees monthly and paying their costuming upkeep,” said Hamelin. “So we’ve done this as a fundraiser so they don’t have to have it come strait out of their pockets.”
Hamelin says only students who’ve been on the team for more than two years are allowed to compete. Part of the reason it’s reserved for more experienced students is they are required to completely choreograph their dance on their own.
“Dancing and trying to choreograph and teach, I was a little bit scared,” said Nicole Permann, a senior on the Hillcrest ballroom dance team. “But now I’m excited that it’s (the competition) a bit closer.”
Permann’s dance partner is Mr. Josh Hobbs, an art teacher at Hillcrest. “It was a really good experience for me as a teacher because it reversed the roll,” said Hobbs. “Usually I’m the one teaching so it reminded me the patience and empathy you need as a teacher, which is really good.”
The competition will be held this Friday, November 20 at 7:00 pm. Doors open at 6:30. Tickets purchased in advanced cost $3 for students with ID, $5 for general admission, and $20 for a family. Tickets bought at the door cost $4 for students with ID, $6 for general admission, and $24 for a family.
