Itaska Lee-Russey and Issac Pearson, students at Garfield High, join more than 40 young writers on stage at the Seattle Public Library 6 p.m. May 27. Itaska and Issac will read poetry and prose crafted under the guidance of Garfield Writer-in-residence Eli Hastings. Thanks to Seattle Art and Lectures’ Writers in Schools (WITS) program, Hastings conducted creative writing workshops with students at Garfield High during a year-long residency

Chosen for their outstanding creative writing, Itaska and Issac will read their works before a crowd of over 300 people during the WITS end-of-year reading and celebration. This free event is open to the public and celebrates the best student writing over two evenings. Elementary and middle school students will read at 6 p.m. May 26, and high school students on May 27 at 6 p.m. at Seattle Public Library.

The Writers in the Schools (WITS) program matches a local, creative writer with a school district to design lesson plans that follow the curriculum, goals, and standards of the classroom, engage students in writing and build self-confidence. The program aims to invigorate both students and teachers with fresh ideas and encouragement.

Seattle Arts and Lectures’ Writers in the Schools program, founded in 1994, believes that through working collaboratively with classroom teachers and professional, published creative writers, students are empowered to become authors of their own lives. WITS writers-in-residence provide a meaningful role model for every student. Since 1994, the program has served 67,500 K-12 public school students and 1,200 teachers in the Puget Sound region. Parents and teachers interested in bringing WITS to local schools should contact Rebecca Hoogs, Seattle Arts & Lectures Director of Education Programs, at [email protected] or 206-621-2230 x18. For more information about the WITS program, visit www.lectures.org/wits.