The KidSAKE Foundation of St. Clair County will present creative writing workshops to each fifth and sixth grade student in the Marysville School District March 13th and 14th. Workshops will be led by international scholar Dr. Darlene Leifson. The workshops are made possible through a generous grant from the Michigan Council for the Arts and Cultural Affairs as well as sponsorships and advertising from area businesses and organizations. Designed as a curricular enrichment activity, the workshop themes connect to the play The Boy at the Edge of Everything, by award-winning playwright Finegan Kruckemeyer, which students will see on Friday. The performance will be presented by the Eastern Michigan University Children’s Theatre touring company. KidSAKE will also present each school library with the two volume set: New Visions/New Voices, 25 Years/25 Plays, which contain the script for the play and other works developed at The Kennedy Center festival of the same name. Dr. Leifson designed participatory workshops that give students the opportunity to tap into their creative side through writing, creative exploration and dramatic processes. Dr. Leifson received her BA in English from Brigham Young University, an MA in applied drama and theatre from Eastern Michigan University and a PhD in humanities from the University of Texas-Dallas, with emphasis in the philosophy of creativity, dramatic literature, and theatre and performance theory. This program is made possible, in part, by the generous support of the Michigan Council for the Arts and Cultural Affairs, the National Endowment for the Arts, and numerous community businesses and organizations, including: The Community Foundation of St. Clair County, Pollock-Randall & Marysville Funeral Homes, Marysville Lions, Marshall E. Campbell Company, SEMCO Energy, TP Logos, Blue Water Habitat for Humanity, Raymond James, and Chef Shell’s. Since 2000, the KidSAKE Foundation has been serving youth and communities through arts-based and other initiatives that encourage service, promote leadership and build self-esteem. To customize a camp or workshop for your students, please contact Jenny Rogers at kidsakefoundation@gmail.com. For more info about the KidSAKE Foundation, visit KidSAKE’s website at www.thekidsakefoundation.org.
