For Colored Girls Review

Hello and welcome back fellow tigers!

            I hope that you all enjoyed Professor Williams’ interview and her song snippet that she gave us last week! Although brief, I enjoyed meeting Prof. Williams and I am looking forward to attending “Green Kabaret”. Also, we would like to congratulate the athletic department on their many victories last week.

            As you may have heard in some of your classes, we are hosting a screening and panel discussion on Ntozake Shange’s “for colored girls, who considered suicide when the rainbow is enuf.”  We hope to have a lot of people to come out for both events.  If your professor is offering any extra credit please take notes, and be respectful of your peers.  The version of “for colored girls”, that will be shown Friday at 10:30 a.m., is far from the Tyler Perry adaptation that we all became acquainted with a few years back. Yes, Tyler Perry did give a modern view on some poems however, for someone like me who had never heard of the original choreopoem until two weeks ago it is very misleading.  After reading and listening to the entire play, I have come to love it; it makes me want to try to incorporate some of Shange’s writing styles into my own poetry, or creating a genre of my own.

            The panel discussion will include students and faculty that will share their own point of view of the poem.  Our peer, Ms. Kamri Jordan, will be featured on the panel. She will discuss if she had any difficulties reading the poem, and if it is relatable to her and her work.  She will also discuss what she can take from Shange’s writing style and incorporate into her own work.

We look forward to seeing everyone bright and early Friday morning at 10:30 in the LRC (student success) auditorium, and at 1:00pm for the panel and performances. If your professors aren’t offering extra credit, still come and support your peers.

Sincerely,

AB

LLP Award Winning Faculty!

Hello and welcome back Fellow Tigers!

            My name is Alexis Brooks, and I am back again as the social media intern for the LLP department. I hope that everyone enjoyed their summer and is having a good start to the Fall 2016 semester. We would like to congratulate the football with their two victories against Jackson State University, and University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff! Of course there have been a few events on campus already, but there are much more to come. Be sure to come out to the screening of Ntozake Shange’s for colored girls whohave considered suicide/when the rainbow is enuf on Friday September 23 in the LRC (student success center) auditorium.

            This week we would like to highlight our Full-Time Temporary Teacher of the Year Prof. Marsha Williams. I had a chance to sit down and talk to her about her initial reaction to finding out that she won, where she attended school, and what she enjoys doing in her spare time. Professor Williams was not alone in winning in our department. Dr. Michelle J. Pinkard won the award for Tenure Track Teacher of the Year.

Prof. Marsha Williams Leads Poetry Workshop

A few things that I found out about Prof. Williams is that she received her undergraduate degree at Berkley College of Music and finished her graduate studies in English here at TSU. She has written and published songs for major recording artists; she also enjoys singing, playing the guitar and writing songs. The songs that are written by Prof. Williams are “green songs”, which talk about environmental advocacy, and she also incorporates her desire for environmental activism into the classroom. She has students that were affected by the Flint Water Crisis, Saudi Arabia water shortage and other issues in her class, and they are encouraged to write about what’s going on around them. 

When I asked Prof. Williams “What is one issue that’s going on environmentally that you would change and why?” Her response was: “Pipeline industry. It is preying on the communities across the United States. The pipeline industry transports fracked gas to the Gulf of Mexico for export. There is no benefit for Americans, and it put citizens in danger, the government needs to bring the companies in and get a handle on it. “

I enjoyed my time with Professor Williams and I look forward to her event that she has called the “Green Cabaret,” which centered on environmental advocacy through spoken word, songs, presentations and much more. Please check our Facebook page to see the talented Professor Williams sing one of her green songs and also to see some great artwork from her students.

Sincerely

AB

Countdown to the End of the Semester

Here is what we have all been waiting for; the end is here students and professors. 

How exciting is it? I mean, we started the semester in the gloomy, and cold weather of winter in January when spring seemed so far away. We even had a few snow days that we thought would cancel class for at least a week, but we were sadly mistaken. Then, February comes and it's still cold, and we are preparing for midterms. After study guides and midterms, it is March and spring break is here. Some of us took that time to earn a credit during “X-Treme Spring Break” course while others vacationed on the beaches in Miami, Panama City, and Cancun.  

After that week is over we are back to reality and it is finally starting to warm up, but with springtime comes unpredictable allergies. Still March, some of us began taking graduation pictures while others crossed fraternities and sororities, beginning a new chapter in their lives.  

Here it is April, and finally SEC week, but to me it screams FREE FOOD. SEC week is where we the students meet and elect our new SGA officers, and also a week full of the same flyers being posted all around campus and even on Instagram. SEC week is over and we are finally at the last stretch of the semester getting ready for finals and graduation.

It has been a pretty easy stress free semester for me. I really enjoyed all of my classes this semester, and I liked all of my professors this semester. I hope you all have enjoyed my blogs as much as I enjoyed writing them. I really hope that everyone has a great summer, congratulations to all of the graduates and stay safe.

Be sure to do the teacher evaluations, register for fall classes, and apply for housing if needed. To the upcoming seniors enjoy this summer and next semester because after this we will enter the “REAL WORLD”, to the under classmen enjoy college make as many memories as possible and be respectful to yourself and everyone you encounter on or off campus.

Remember even though the semester is over we are all still a representation of The Illustrious Tennessee State University, so please don’t go out this summer acting crazy. In June, our university will be celebrating its 104^th birthday, so if you are in town I’m sure there will be some type of celebration if not shout out us out on social media.

It has been my pleasure to serve as your LLP social intern!

Sincerely,

Alexis Brooks

Social Media Intern

I Want to Write 2016 A Success!

Hello fellow Tigers and welcome back to the LLP blog! 

Before we get started thanks to everyone that came out last weekend to the I Want to Write Festival! I had a really good time in the different workshops and slam sessions, and I wish I could have been present for more; but there is always next time!  

Also, thanks to all of the staff and special guest that came out and hosted classes, we appreciate you! Lastly, to Dr. Pinkard, I know you had a lot on your plate when it came to this event, but it definitely turned out great. This was my first time going to the #IW2WC and I really enjoyed myself, so thanks for taking your time to put together this event!

My favorite part of the whole #IW2WC was the poetry slam! There were high school students participating in a contest and they were awesome! I honestly was not expecting them to come with the fire like that but they were great. Even though some had a few slip-ups, the crowd encouraged them to continue and I really liked that. There also were a few dance breaks that I think really lightened the mood a lot!

I did sit in on a few classes and I really liked them, but I couldn’t stay long because I was trying to go around and take different pictures and videos. I did sit in on a freestyle class and painting and poetry class that I really liked.

Overall the event was a success, and I can’t wait for the next one! I really hope that all who came out enjoyed themselves as much as I did! I hope that everyone was exposed to different things within poetry and maybe even learned how to open up on the page and new techniques for the stage.

Be sure to check our Facebook and Twitter for videos and pictures from the event.

Poetically Possible!

Alexis Brooks

Social Media Intern

LLP Represents at the Major Decision Fair

Hello Fellow Tigers,

We are at the one-week marker for the end of the semester, so students print off those teacher evaluations and turn in all your work: the end is near. In case you missed it, last Friday there was a Major Decision Fair and another Pupil to Professional meet up featuring Dr. Morgan-Curtis.

            The Major Decision Fair is an event to help students know the different fields that TSU has to offer. I would like to see the event done in the fall semester or even during the summer for incoming freshman, first time students, or transfer students. The event was held last Friday, April 15^th in Gentry, and Dr. Jennifer Hayes and I were there with a few other people from the different colleges around campus. Some of the colleges in attendance were the College of Business, College of Teaching and Learning, the College of Engineering and even the Career Development Center.

A group of local high school students also came by and got some information from our table. Dr. Hayes and I told the students what the LLP department has to offer and even invited them to come to the I Want to Write Festival this weekend. We do hope that a few of the high school students come out to that.

Overall it was a nice event. The turnout could have been better, but hopefully the next one will be bigger and better. 

Don’t forget that the #IW2W Poetry Festival is this FRIDAY AND SATURDAY please register for events and come out to this FREE event! We hope to see you there

Sincerely,
Alexis Brooks
Social Media Intern

Poetry Month and So Much More!

          It is almost the end of April, which means the spring semester is coming to an end! However, we do have a few more events to cover before we can saw goodbye to Spring 2016. Class registration is now open for the upcoming summer and fall semester so be sure to get advised (CORRECTLY) and get registered for classes! Also, if you are applying for on campus housing that has also opened up from April 1^st- May 1^st, with a 100.00 registration fee; be sure to get that taken care of if you are planning to stay on campus next fall.

            It was hard to miss all of the Instagram post, flyers being handed out and posted on every hall in every building. Yes, it is SEC Week once again! I don’t know about you, but I love SEC week. Not only do I get FREE stuff, I also get to see the people that are running for positions to be the face our school. I hope you all went out and supported all of the candidates and hopefully everyone voted!

            The next thing on our agenda was the "Movie and a Metaphor" with Soul Fire and the Film Club. There was a viewing of SLAM, and also open mic session.  Students who felt inspired after the film spit poetry, while others recited the dopest lines.  Everyone should feel free to express themselves. Yes, it is okay to be nervous because your sharing your personal thoughts with total strangers, but you will never know how good you are until you share with others. Also, there was an online trivia activity that began Monday and ended on Friday. I hope some of you participated in that and won some good prizes.

            Next week the LLP department is hosting their 6^th annual International Food Festival, so come out and try new dishes. There is also another Pupil to Professional Workshop next Friday, featuring Dr. Samantha Morgan-Curtis! Don’t forget the I Want To Write Festival towards the end of the month!  Award winning poet, activist and co-founder of HBO's Def Poetry Jam Bruce George is the featured speaker.  Register soon to secure your seat at www.tnstate.edu/llp.           

            Always be sure to check our Facebook and Twitter of updates and events through the week! Remember the semester is slowly but surely coming to an end so lets all finish strong!

           

AB

            

Pupil to Professional, Voter Registration and Other Events

Hello fellow Tigers!

                I’m here again with the latest news within the LLP department and a few on campus events,

so let’s just dive right in. Wednesdays are days where organizations and local employers set up
information tables in the Student Center to ignite student interest.  Easy enough, right? Wrong! Last week on Instagram and in various campus GroupMe messages, The “Live 75”(SGA) announced that they would have information table set up for people to register to vote and get a FREE TSU black history t-shirt. So of course the word got out and the turn out for registration was unbelievable. Well, of course when the members of SGA brought the shirts out it was complete CHAOS. I barely got a shirt and almost lost my phone in the process! So even through the chaos, and the long wait, I received a shirt and I registered to vote!

                In other news, there will be another Pupil to Professional event Friday, April 1^st at 2:30pm. There will be some Human Resource Representatives coming out to help us prepare for careers! Plan to come out because we want everyone to be as prepared as possible when it comes time for interviews and internships! Also, next week the awesome poetry group Soul Fire and the LLP film club are hosting: A Movie and A Metaphor. They will be showing Slam and there will also be Open Mic Poetry. So come out April 8^th at 11am in Humanities 113 to be a part of this event! Don’t forget April 22^nd-April 23^rd is the I Want to Write Festival, so come out and support your peers and learn a little more about poetry.

Since the semester is coming to end you all know that SEC week is coming up shortly so be on the look for that and also for the graduating seniors prepare for senior next week April 4^th- April 8^th. Always check our Facebook and Twitter throughout the week for other updates and information!

Sincerely,

Alexis Brooks

Social Media Intern