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Elementary teacher one of eight semifinalists for Minnesota IdolBy Joel Stottrup Elizabeth Keeney, a fifth- grade instructor at Princeton's North Elementary, is one of eight semifinalists in KARE 11 TV's Minnesota Idol singing competition. The contestant who is chosen Minnesota Idol will be given a recording contract to make a CD that will then be distributed in Target stores. The winner will also sing live on the station's news show on Feb. 22. Kaye Backlund, a fourth- grade teacher who works in Keeney's building, urged Keeney to enter after learning last year of the competition that required sending in a videotape of the contestant singing. "It's because she's so good," Backlund explained Tuesday why she wanted Keeney to enter. "She's been in the [annual Princeton Education Association] talent show several times. I've listened to her." Keeney, 27, has been teaching at North for five years. She spent some of her youth in New Lisbon, Wis., and then moved to northern Wisconsin where she graduated from high school in Superior. Keeney says she likes all kinds of music but her favorite is country. She sang in musicals when she was in grade school and had a lead part in the musical, "South Pacific," when she was a freshman in high school. Two years later she was Dorothy in "The Wizard of Oz" at her high school. For a couple of years, while teaching in Princeton, she was a singer in a band called Starlight Express. She has also sung the national anthem many times at high school athletic events and has sung in, and been a judge for, North Elementary's talent show. Keeney found out at 9:45 a.m. last Friday from KARE 11 that she was one of the eight Minnesota Idol semifinalists. The videotape she sent in was from last year's Princeton Education Association talent show in which she sang "Faith of the Heart." Starting Monday this week and going through Wednesday next week, KARE 11 is showing a videotape clip of one of the finalists each morning starting as early as 5 at its internet Web site, KARE11.com. People may log on to the Web site beginning Feb. 10 to listen to the tapes and vote for the contestant of their choice. "Then we'll pick the top three and have them go into a professional recording studio and perform a song, which will then be put on our Web site," the latest KARE 11 Minnesota Idol update says on its Web site. That voting will begin Feb. 10. KARE 11 says it received hundreds of applicant videotapes and was airing their tapes over several months. Then KARE 11 staff, along with recording-industry executives, spent hours reviewing the tapes to decide on the eight semifinalists. "I was ecstatic," said Keeney about learning she is a semifinalist. "I couldn't wait to tell [fellow staff and her pupils]. They were all rooting for me." She already had a little taste of the fame that some might feel from being on television when she was featured as an applicant on KARE 11 in December. As an alto who says she likes to express herself through music, Keeney had a lot of fans among the pupils in her classroom Friday afternoon when she talked about being a semifinalist for Minnesota Idol. "She looked like a bright red cherry when she heard it [the news], said pupil Shannon Nelson. "We'll put up signs," said pupil Briana Angstman, about passing on the news. Nicole Myers, another pupil, quipped that everyone should be told how good a teacher Keeney is. "I just hope she does well," said Backlund, the teacher who encouraged Keeney to enter the contest. Princeton Union-Eagle |