Staff Celebrations
Roosevelt High performing arts teacher named to State Thespians Hall of Fame for exceptional contributions to theater
The Washington State Thespian organization announced that Roosevelt High performing arts teacher Ruben VanKempen has been named to the Washington State Thespians Hall of Fame for his exceptional contributions to the growth of theater and theater education in the state. A Hall of Fame dinner will be held in his honor on Oct. 14 in Seattle. RSVP at baorme@seattleschools.org
VanKempen was nominated for his continued work creating partnerships with many local theaters, including Seattle Repertory Theatre, Intiman Theatre, ACT Theatre, 5th Avenue Theatre, Book-It Repertory Theatre and many more.
He has taken more than 80 students to the Edinburgh Theatre Festival to perform twice. Under his care, Roosevelt was awarded the title of one of the top 10 theater programs in the nation in 1996.
Beth Orme, a math teacher at Roosevelt who nominated Ruben, said VanKempen is one of the most respected theater teachers in the state. “He has led the state in bringing theater education into the modern area. He is fervently admired by his peers and has a great passion for theater education. I have heard a teacher say, ‘Who doesn’t know Ruben?’ This is true; everyone should know Ruben and it is time to honor him for his amazing career and passion for theater,” she said.
VanKempen has been on the Washington State Thespian Board for about 12 years – three of these years as the Director of Washington State Thespians. While on the state board he organized college auditions, teacher in-service, state conferences, and communications.
The Washington State Thespian organization is an affiliate of the Educational Theatre Association (EdTA), a professional organization for theater educators. In addition to providing professional development, advocacy, and networking support to its members, EdTA operates the International Thespian Society, an honorary organization for high school and middle school theater students. The organization has 4,600 professional members and close to 100,000 active Thespians in more than 3,900 affiliated high schools and middle schools. The 2 millionth Thespian was inducted into the organization during fall 2009. EdTA’s annual National Thespian Festival is the premier showcase and adjudication assessment for high school theater, drawing students and teachers from throughout the United States.