Dance festival held at Vancouver School of the Arts

Shumway Neighborhood — From the polka to whip and nae nae, hundreds of elementary and middle school students took the stage to bust a move on Feb. 16 for Vancouver Public Schools’ 19th annual Dance Festival. Hosted by Vancouver School of Arts and Academics, the festival included performances by classes from Roosevelt, Sacajawea, Walnut Grove, Harney, Ogden, Truman, Hazel Dell, Marshall, Salmon Creek, Felida, Anderson and Chinook elementary schools, as well as Fruit Valley Community Learning Center and McLoughlin and Thomas Jefferson middle schools. Sheyla Mattos, a dance teacher at Felida and Sacajawea coordinated this year’s festival. She and other dance teachers from around the district selected a variety of styles and songs to represent all the different schools. This year’s festival had a high level of participation among different schools. Mattos stressed that the impact of the festival on students goes beyond them just having a good time. “For some of our students, this is the first time they feel the power of dance as an art form, a healthy way to express themselves and a place where they can shine,” she said.