March 15, 2010 issue
Dance teacher Bethel award winner
By Bethel College staffNORTH NEWTON, Kan. — Katrina Toews has been dedicated to dance from a young age — so much so that she made it part of her Bethel College major, though the college does not have a dance program.
Toews
Toews, winner of Bethel’s Young Alumnus Award, is a 1998 graduate with a bachelor’s degree in fine arts and elementary education. She went on to earn a master’s degree in dance education at American University in Washington, D.C. From 2002 to 2004 she taught at James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Va.
In 2004 Toews became director of education at the Washington School of Ballet and in 2006 was appointed director of The Washington Ballet@THEARC. Pronounced “the ark,” THEARC stands for Town Hall Education, Arts & Recreation Campus. She works to instill the school’s artistic vision in dance students at a satellite campus in the District of Columbia’s Anacostia neighborhood, where 28 percent of residents are unemployed and 50 percent of children live in poverty.
In addition to American and James Madison universities and the Washington School of Ballet, Toews has taught at Dance Place and the Davis Center. She founded K2 Dance Company, which has performed at the Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage. She has danced with bosmadance, Carla & Company and Sister’s Trousers, all Washington-based companies. The Washington Post described her work as solidly crafted, with choreography that stands out.
Toews is a member of Hyattsville (Md.) Mennonite Church. Her parents are Jerry and Leann Toews of Goessel.
Toews will lead a group of her students in a dance performance at 7:30 p.m. March 28 and receive the Young Alumnus Award in convocation at 11 a.m. March 29, when she will speak on “Leaps and Bounds: From Goessel, Kan., to Washington, D.C.” Both events are in Krehbiel Auditorium.
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