Kim Hille Makes Sure Tumwater High School’s Dance Team Includes Fun and Winning

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By Gail Wood

les schwabWith the precision of Olympic pair ice skaters, they gracefully spin and turn across the gym floor, dancing to a jazzy, upbeat song.

Each of the 24 dancers move at the same time as if they’re programed by a computer to perform simultaneously. Their arms point upward. Several pirouette then do a graceful, backward spin in unison.

tumwater dance
Kim Hille has been the Tumwater High School dance coach for 19 years.

For 2 ½ hours on this Monday evening, with coach Kim Hille on her perch watching and coaxing, the Tumwater High School’s dance team practices, doing their two-minute routines repeatedly. Their precision is no accident.

“We practice hard,” said Sharlee Fine, a senior team captain. “I just love it.”

And hard practice – they practice Monday and Wednesday evenings for 2 ½ hours and Saturday mornings for four hours – is part of the secret to their dancing dynasty. They’re Washington’s dancing queens, winners of eight straight state championships and earning crowns on ten of the past eleven. Earlier this month, the T-Birds competed at the UDA National Dance Team Championship in Orlando, Florida, placing eighth in the varsity Hip Hop division.

“I like being on the dance team,” Fine said at a recent practice at Bush Middle School. “You make a lot of friends and competing is probably the best part for me. It’s fun.”

About once a month, the team is in a competition. The big one – the state competition – is in March. Besides the competition, they also perform for their school and at other local events. They performed at the halftime of every T-Bird home football game. During basketball season, they perform at least once a week during halftime. In October, they were on a bigger stage when they performed at the halftime of a Seattle Seahawks game.

tumwater dance team
To perfect their routines, the Tumwater High School dance team logs hours of practice time.

But the highlight has been their six-day trip to Orlando. Every other year, Hille brings her team to nationals, paying for the trip with fundraisers. This year, the T-Birds dance team competed at nationals in four divisions—two varsity and two junior varsity. They both competed in pom and hip hop. Tumwater’s junior varsity placed sixth in pom.

“It was really fun,” said Angela Mack, a sophomore who is on the junior varsity squad. “It was kind of stressful when we were practicing there and right before we went on. Your nerves are like taking you over.”

Mack admitted that there was a sense of indebtedness competing at nationals.

“You want to make it count because you’re flying across the country,” Mack said.

The challenge is the same for each dancer. First, there’s the memorization, the digesting of every hand movement, every head nod, kick and twirl. And, to stay in sync, each dancer is clicking off an eight count in their heads, counting “one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight.” Each number brings another step, another movement.

tumwater dance
With the music playing, Tumwater’s dance team entertains the crowd at a home basketball game.

“Every muscle in your body is doing something,” Mack said. “You have to remember where your hands go and what your foot is supposed to do up in the air.”

The music is like a costume, adding to the mood of the performance.

“Technically, we can count ourselves and do the routine the same without the music,” said Sami Jones, a senior and team captain. “But the music helps add something else to it.”

Besides the memorization, there’s also the conditioning. Dancers are in great athletic shape.

“You can condition on your own,” Jones said. “But we do a lot of conditioning with the team, too. We’ll do the routine full out three times. Then run a lap.”

To build team unity, Hille assigns her older dancers with “sisters,” helping the younger, first-year dancers fit in.

“We have to feed off each other’s energy,” Jones said. “And we have to be in sync with each other. If we’re not on the same vibe, it could throw us off.”

Their friendships, which is grown through summer camps, practice and get-togethers, also helps them perform better.

“It keeps us from arguing a lot,” Jones said. “Everything gets tense when you’re working so hard for something. But knowing that they’re your friends and your sisters and they’re there no matter what it’s kind of amazing.”

tumwater dance
The Tumwater High School dance team performed in front of 68,000 Seahawks fans during halftime.

For 19 years, Hille has coached Tumwater’s dance team, building a winning program that’s become a blueprint for other schools. Hille knows the program from both sides – as a coach and as a dancer. She’s a 1983 Tumwater High School graduate and she turned out for the team and became enthralled with the dancing, friendships and competition.

“It was probably the best part of my high school experience,” Hille said at a recent practice. “It kept me focused. It was such a big team community. It just made high school easier.”

Hille’s experience with the dance team was so rewarding she wanted to share it. And she didn’t have to wait long for that opportunity. As a junior and senior at Tumwater, Hille coached a junior high school drill team.

“My sister wanted to try out for the team and I saw it wasn’t working so I decided to come out and help coach,” Hille said.

tumwater dance
Whether they’re jumping, spinning or twirling, Tumwater’s dance team stays in sync.

After college, Hille got a job as an English teacher at Tumwater’s Bush Middle School and started a dance team there. Soon, she was asked to coach at the high school. And, naturally, she couldn’t refuse. All along, the attraction isn’t just the dancing. It’s also the life lessons her kids learn.

“This experience helps them develop into great, mature adults,” Hille said “All of the things you hope to have in your leaders, they’re developing here – everything from commitment to dedication to perseverance. It’s not easy what I’m asking these kids to do.”

For help with coaching and with choreography, Hille has dipped into her past. Hille’s assistant coach is Corynn Dohrman, who was on Hilles’ team in middle school and high school. Dohrman, who was a Crimson Girl while attending Washington State University, joined Hille’s coaching staff last year. Carrie Smith, a friend of Hille’s and the dance team coach at San Diego State, does the T-Birds choreography.

“She’s a big help,” Hille said. “Choreography is a big part of it.”

tumwater dance
Long practice hours takes commitment but is rewarded with excellent performances and long-lasting friendships.

Dancing in front of 68,000 Seahawks fans takes lots of confidence. And, Hille will tell you, that takes lots of friendships. To pull it off in front of a crowd, they need to support each other.

“That takes a lot of confidence,” Hille said.

Next year, to celebrate her 20th year as a coach at Tumwater, Hille is going to put together an alumni team, reconnecting life-long friends. From August until April for the past 19 years, Hille has been devoted to her dance teams, coaching and mentoring. She’s loved every minute.

“It’s a year around commitment, but it’s my passion,” Hille said. “It’s what I love to do. Teaching is great. I love that, but this is my creative outlet.”

Welcome to Hille’s wonderful life.

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