The Kent Meridian High School African Club put on a showcase at the Kent Senior Center on June 21, which included dancers from the African Club, DTYD, Afro-Unique and a local Kenyan Group. COURTESY PHOTO, Brin Hamilton

The Kent Meridian High School African Club put on a showcase at the Kent Senior Center on June 21, which included dancers from the African Club, DTYD, Afro-Unique and a local Kenyan Group. COURTESY PHOTO, Brin Hamilton

Kent-Meridian students channel culture, history and passion with dance

African heritage comes alive in Teen Voices program

  • Wednesday, June 26, 2019 8:16am
  • Life

The King County Library System (KCLS) Teen Voices program is helping Kent youth connect with their cultural identities through art and self-expression.

As part of the program, students attending Kent-Meridian High School drew upon the area’s diverse population and African heritage to produce Afro Culture Night – a music and dance showcase on June 21 at the Kent Senior Center – providing students an outlet for their creativity and expression while connecting with their cultural heritage and community.

Many students have cultural connections to African countries.

“Dance is something I love because it connects me to my culture,” one K-M student, Shalom, said of the program,

Another student, Dorcianne, who serves as the high school’s African Club choreographer, uses her choreography skills to bring students together and express African culture for the greater community. She recently led a team in a dance presentation for the Kent International Festival, an annual event which celebrates the diverse cultures and talents found in her city.

“We are in a new country with another language and culture. It is important than young people keep this to give to their children – to know where we came from and to honor that,” she added.

The Teen Voices program is part of Dream Big: Anything is Possible – a youth empowerment campaign launched earlier this year by the Seattle Seahawks’ Russell Wilson and his wife Ciara’s Why Not You Foundation, KCLS, KCLS Foundation and JPMorgan Chase. The multi-week spring program is offered to teens in Auburn, Enumclaw, Federal Way, Kent, Renton and Tukwila to motivate, empower and prepare them to be tomorrow’s leaders with skills, tools, confidence and mentors for future success.

“Teen Voices is a program platform for youth identity development, agency and self-expression. A positive identity is vital to youth finding success in life and is fed by affirming experiences, personal agency, deep connections to family and cultural roots – a sense of belonging to a community,” said Kent Library Teen Librarian Rebecca Hershey. “Cultural and artistic experiences are strong allies to youth growing the ability to succeed.”

Drawing upon their own African heritage, the students incorporated techniques correlating from several African traditional dances, as well as Afrobeat and hip-hop styles to express and affirm their identities creatively. In doing so, the students are hoping to inspire their Kent neighbors to celebrate the diverse cultures within their community.

The dance showcase was presented by the Kent-Meridian High School African Club and included dancers from the African Club, DTYD, Afro-Unique and a local Kenyan Group.

Learn more at whynotyoufdn.org.


Talk to us

Please share your story tips by emailing editor@kentreporter.com.

To share your opinion for publication, submit a letter through our website https://www.kentreporter.com/submit-letter/. Include your name, address and daytime phone number. (We’ll only publish your name and hometown.) Please keep letters to 300 words or less.

COURTESY PHOTO, Brin Hamilton

COURTESY PHOTO, Brin Hamilton

More in Life

t
City to begin major renovations at Kent Commons Community Center

Work on $1.5 million project to start soon to upgrade recreation facility

t
Spring is near as nesting eagles return to Riverbend in Kent

Eagles can be spotted near Riverbend Golf Complex and along the Green River and Interurban Trail

t
Kent YMCA to offer free Community Day on Saturday, Feb. 24

Facility will be open noon to 3 p.m. to all for swim, gym and other activities

Voiceover actor Kat Cressida will visit Auburn at Unlock the Con on Feb. 17-18 for meet and greets, an exclusive dinner with a Q&A panel and a Sunday “Brunch with the Bride.” (Courtesy photo)
Disney voice actor Kat Cressida to host meet and greet in Auburn

Tickets are available for this two-day fandom event at the Outlet Collection’s Unlock the Con on Feb. 17 and 18.

t
Performers wanted for return of ‘Kent Has Talent’ show

Registration starts Feb. 1; auditions March 23-24; show set for May 23

t
Cider & Ale Trail coming to historic downtown Kent March 8

Event to feature cideries, breweries, distilleries from Washington and Oregon

Construction at the Snoqualmie Casino. CAMERON SIRES, Sound Publishing
Snoqualmie Casino expansion inches closer to completion

Convention space, ballroom and 210-room hotel to be completed by 2025

The Seattle Dykes on Bikes at the 2023 Making Strides of Seattle breast cancer walk. Courtesy photo.
Lesbian motorcycle club offers community and security

Membership continues to grow for the first Washington state chapter of Dykes on Bikes.

t
Lots of Toys for Joy gifts donated, distributed by Puget Sound Fire

Gifts included nearly 3,850 toys; 1,050 stuffed animals; and more

Image courtesy King County Library System
KCLS releases best books list of 2023

Librarians are always reading — here’s their top picks for this year.

t
New pastor to deliver Christmas message at Kent Lutheran Church

The Rev. Tormod Svensson first new pastor in 24 years at the downtown church