Whiz Kid: Eastlake High School Dancer Wins Academic Scholarship

Each week, Sammamish Patch will seek suggestions from readers for individual kids, youth groups, teens, and even sports teams who wow us with their accomplishments.

This week, we congratulate a student from Eastlake High School for her dancing and academic achievements.

Name, age: Katie Teman, 17

School and Neighborhood: A senior at , Teman lives in Sammamish. 

Accomplishments: A member of Eastlake High School’s competitive dance team, Teman won a $500 academic scholarship from the Washington State Dance/Drill Coaches Association. 

The winner of the scholarship was announced at the completion of the recent state championship competition, held on March 26. Eastlake’s team finished  in Pom with a superior rating, second in dance, and third in kick. Winning the scholarship on top of the team’s success was an extra bonus for Teman.

“It was really exciting,” she said. “It was just icing on the cake.”

Key to awesomeness: Teman first started dancing when she was 3-years-old. She enrolled at Sammamish’s Highland Dance Academy and studied many different types of dance, including ballet, tap, jazz and hip-hop.

When she began school at Eastlake High, she felt joining the dance team would be a great way to meet people and be a part of a team.

“I’m really glad I was able to be a part of it for three years,” she said.

Teman said that she has learned many different things in the team environment, including a willingness to try new things, a drive to practice and improve, and most importantly patience. She also credits her dance coach, Corinne Immel, for inspiring her. 

Teman is getting ready to move on to college and hopes to study architectural engineering. 

“When I was younger I realized that I liked looking at pretty houses,” she said.

Her strong math skills have given her more of an interest in the engineering aspects of architecture as opposed to the creative aspects of design. She’ll also keep dancing, even if just for fun, because that is where she expresses her artistic side.

“Dance is my creative outlet,” she said.

Editor's note: Sammamish Patch wants to hear about amazing children and teens and select one each week as the Whiz Kid. If you know of such a student, please contact Brad Wong, Sammamish Patch editor, at brad.wong@patch.com.