Youth Writers Camp

The Youth Writers Camp curriculum addresses current events, including topics related to social justice, while at the same time keeping August Wilson’s literary legacy as a core objective. For our 2022 Youth Writers Camp, led by educators, Carla Knight and Dionna Westry, sessions will focus on the topic of the American Dream, as portrayed in the August Wilson play, Jitney. Each session will include excerpts of analysis from the play, application to modern-day equity, and social justice issues, poetry writing prompts, and an opportunity for students to share/perform their writing. By the end of the camp, students will have several pieces of complete writing, from which they will choose a piece to perform in a virtual slam poetry competition. Students’ pieces will be displayed on a website where viewers can visit and vote on the most compelling poetry performances, based on the “American Dreaming” theme.