Writing for Social Change
Our Writing for Social Change project will have a lasting impact on MN's literary arts and multicultural education. We will equip African Americans to write their own stories as a manifestation of cultural resilience. Inspired by the African proverb until the Lion tells his side of the story, the tale of the hunt will always glorify the Hunter,the community will become the lions (leaders) who shape their own destiny through the transformative power of storytelling and cultural preservation.
2022-2023 Cultural Heritage and Community Identity Grants - Winter 2021
Provide resources, tools, and training in the humanities through an 8 part workshop series
Produce and disseminate 4 children's books written and illustrated by African Americans
Provide wide access to the learning experience (through virtual format) and final published books (through libraries and Biblioboard)
Launched website for the competition
Prepared and scheduled- in-person workshop for 1/28/22
Published additional resources to support writers
Developed marketing materials and social media campaign strategy; The outcome of our funding was creating a humanities program that supported writing for social change (using storytelling to promote justice and equity). As a result, our nonprofit:
* Produced 4 children's books written by African American authors
* Hosted a four-part writing series that focused on the humanities (storytelling, cultural heritage, and community building)
* Provided wide access to learning experiences through an online format. We posted the workshops and additional learning tools on our YouTube channel and social media platforms. We also shared the resources through our e-newsletter.
The above outcomes are demonstrative of achieving our goals. In addition, we exceeded our goals by developing a framework of action that can be replicated to develop sustainable change at the intersection of humanities and the literary arts. We will use this model to build more community-led writing projects that celebrate African American cultural heritage, promote multicultural education, and foster storytelling as a tool for community-building.
We determined that we achieved our goals through the production of 4 high-quality children's books, mentorship of four debut diverse authors, offering learning tools for future authors, and supporting multicultural education through an intergenerational approach.
Our VISTA team member has supported the initial project by improving our marketing and infrastructure for this project. Her services were covered by the VISTA funding.
Mr. Cory Kemp, Treasurer
Dr. Vanjelis Ngwa, Board Chair
Ms. Ngeri Nnachi, Secretary
Mr. Law Thao; PPGJLI Board Members 1. Dr. Vanjelis Ngwa, Ed.D., M.A., Board Chair (Colissa LLC, CEO) 2. Ms. Ngeri Azuewah, J.D., M.P.P., A.B.D., Secretary (Doctoral Candidate. UMBC) 3. Mr. Cory Kemp, B.A., Treasurer (Bank of America, Banker) 4. Mr. Law Thao, B.A., Board Member (Youthprise, Communications Associate) 5. Mr. Edwin Davies-Grant, M.A., Board Member (Horton, IT Specialist)