Statements

Mission

Through the literary and performing arts, Southern Word offers creative solutions for youth to build literacy and presentation skills, reconnect to their education and to their lives, and act as leaders in the improvement of their communities.

Background

Founded in 2008 based on successful spoken word youth development and education strategies; educators, youth development professionals, writers, and poets built Southern Word from the ground up without substantial institutional or investor backing at the start. We have grown to be a national, non-profit leader in the spoken word education field, serving more than 7,500 youth across 8 Tennessee counties last year. An independent assessment conducted by Vanderbilt University in collaboration with Metro Nashville Public Schools assessed Southern Word's high school residency program. The assessment included pre- and post- test, teacher focus groups, student focus groups, and classroom observation. The study found: 1. Program provides greater student engagement, greater perceived emotional safety, strengthened writing and speaking skills, active social and emotional learning, and improved classroom climate as reported by teachers. 2. Program provides increased engagement, greater confidence, a more proficient command of language, confidence in writing ability, improved classroom climate, greater connection to peers, improved relationships with teachers, and a better understanding of their classmates as reported by students. Due to our passion for helping youth develop their voices and map their own futures, we have extended programming into music production and writing of all genres. In a culture which aggressively markets products and lifestyles to young people, Southern Word equips youth with the tools to transition from passive consumers into active thinkers, creators, and projectors of their own positive identity. From guiding and hearing the stories of tens of thousands of youth, Southern Word understands our society's shortcomings as they relate to youth engagement, literacy, diversity, and mental health. We are responding effectively to some of our most entrenched educational and youth development challenges.

Impact

1. SW provides youth, families, teachers, non-profit organizations, and schools with a resource for contemporary, multicultural youth arts which addresses literacy, identity, diversity, and mental health needs.
2. SW creates a cohort of leading young writers and music creators available to inspire and engage with the crucial issues impacting our community.
3. SW builds a community and an economy around positive artistic and educational role models with a focus on under-invested communities and communities of color.

Outcomes 2022-2023
1. Spoken Word Residencies and Writer Cohorts: We served 6,183 youth through 51 school residencies and in-school clubs across 8 counties.
2. Writers in the Schools: We served 421 youth at 2 schools.
3. Community Writer Workshops: We reached 457 youth and adults through Community Workshops.
4. Music Production Programs: We reached 307 youth through music production programs.
5. Community Performances: We reached 8,313 people through 47 community performances.
6. College: We served 396 college students through residencies and workshops at Nashville State Community College and Tennessee State University this year.

Goals
1. Sustain existing infrastructure through increased individual contributions, corporate support and partnership support; communicating to Nashville's leaders, funders, and citizens the important opportunity to institutionalize the Southeast's largest spoken word youth development and education organization.
2. Continue to pilot new program innovation including the Stratford Writers' Room, college and high school essay support, integration of recording technology to help teachers and schools reach curricular objectives, and exploration potential of residencies as a mental health and cross-cultural bridge building intervention.
3. Use seven-year Gear Up grant as an opportunity to expand and assess program on a specific school population over time.
4. Improve connections between school-based programs and after school workshops and shows.

Accomplishments
1. Awarded 2020 Alignment Nashville Experiential Learning Innovator of the Year for our partnership with the Country Music Hall of Fame and National Museum of African American Music with at Pearl-Cohn Entertainment Magnet.
2. Named the 2018 Skanska Educational Enhancement Award Winner at CNM's Salute to Excellence Awards.
3. Selected as one of sixteen organizations nationally to serve as part of the Brave New Voices Network Leadership Cohort. This meant 3 years of matching operating assistance, technical support, and staffing support to increase organizational capacity. This was valued at $430,000 over three years.
4. Sustained budget of approximately $500,000 over five years which allows for three full time administrative staff and five full time mentors at 75% or more of FTE.
5. Received Poetry Foundation operating grant to sustain programs and mentor team.
6. Introduced Nashville Youth Poet Laureate program in partnership with the Mayor's Office, Nashville Public Library, Nashville Public Library Foundation, and Metro Arts. The Nashville Youth Poet Laureate has been selected 4 times to serve as Poet Ambassador for the Southeast and as one of five finalists for National Youth Poet Laureate.
7. Selected as one of the non-profit partners in the inaugural launch of Apple Creative Studios Nashville in 2022.
8. Selected as facilitator for the launch of the Tennessee Youth Poet Laureate program.
9. Paid writer and music mentors more than $400,000 in 2022-23.

Needs

1. We need to grow our individual donor base. Individual contributions represent less than 10% of our revenues. Traditionally, individual contributions account for approximately 30% or more of arts non-profit revenues. Our present balance is due to the success of our initial earned revenue and grant writing strategies. This need has become more significant with the ending of our three-year national grant which provided technical assistance and operating support.
2. Southern Word had a remarkable surge in programmatic activity with support from MNPS, Nashville Public Library, TAC, and Metro Arts. We need to continue to make a case to institutionalize Southern Word as an essential Tennessee youth development and education organization through this consortium. We need to continue to add local community organizations and foundations to realize and invest in this transformational work on a perennial basis.
3. We need educators and experts within the field willing to provide free or low-cost professional development opportunities for our mentors and staff so that we can continue to improve efficacy and leverage best practices.
4. As our organizational staff grow, we need to continue to improve our administrative infrastructure including technology and office space.

CEO Statement

I chose to take on the launch of this non-profit organization which has been a huge investment of time and energy. I first saw spoken word poetry as a youth development tool 25 years ago after I had left the youth development field. I witnessed spoken word as one of the most incredible methods of engaging teens positively. Too often, adults base youth programming on their ideal vision of who they think youth should be. Spoken word programming starts by validating and encouraging youth aspirations from where they are and channeling this interest positively. On a broader level, the commercial success of spoken word poetry is a unique opportunity. Youth are inundated with negative models of success especially as they relate to the music industry's glorification of sex, drugs, violence, and misogyny. Additionally, marketers constantly develop and use sophisticated tools to sell products and consumer lifestyles to our children. I witness urban, suburban, and rural youth emulating these role models out of a need to differentiate themselves and create a distinct identity from mainstream culture. The poet is a positive archetype which counters these popular trends. The poet is intellectual, alternative, positive, spiritual, and socially conscious. With the popularization of this art form, there is an opportunity to elevate and market youth who choose this constructive lifestyle in a way which positively influences other youth. On the ground, spoken word is a fantastic tool for the classroom. The art form combines literacy and presentation skills so we can engage artistic competencies while still speaking to standard curriculum objectives. This is important in validating the aptitudes of students who are not as successful in traditional classroom settings and assessments. While many of these students may not be successful in school, it does not necessarily mean they will not be successful in life. Southern Word identifies and develops leadership qualities that are indicators of this success. Finally, spoken word is unique in its ability to bring people together across traditional social boundaries. Since it finds its roots in such a range of places, youth and adults come together around the shared experience of writing and self-expression.

As we grow in other programmatic spaces such as music production, songwriting, and writing in a variety of genres, this becomes the bellwether for how we shape all youth programs. We work to create programming that is transformational, youth-centered, and values the true potential of young people.

Board Chair Statement

Southern Word captures the essence of the Nashville area, not only the historical context as Music City, as a cultural center and political capital, but its increasingly diverse population and growing urban footprint. In turn, it exemplifies the required investments in education, social connections, and community-building that will determine the success of our region's rapidly changing landscape.  Southern Word helps young Tennesseans discover, craft, and express an authentic voice through poetry and performance.  It helps them tell the story of where they come from, thereby projecting their own identity and crafting the future that they aspire to experience.  Southern Word invests in the next generation of spoken word poets and productive citizens by engaging the current crop of Tennessee's young writers as writer-mentors. These "near peers" are relatable role models with a legitimacy that attracts young people who may be writing or performing for the first time. Young writers are able to witness the possibility of a profession in the arts, and are empowered by the mentors' willingness to invest in future creative work.  Southern Word has developed significant institutional partnerships with schools, libraries, after school programs and even higher education. We value our partnerships as fundamental to our work and our strategy for reaching as many young people as we can.

Also, we know our partners value us:
'Today was amazing. Transformational. I'm at home reading their work from Day 1 and I'm crying, laughing, amazed, speechless, heartbroken, intrigued, and....SO proud of my students You didn't tell me that your 3 people coming today were miracle workers. Best thing I've experienced in the classroom in a very long time. (Just had to share). I'm amazed.'
-MNPS Teacher.

Our board of directors and advisory board members also represent a broad range of institutional partners, artists, and other professionals who support the arts. We aspire for Southern Word and the creative voices of young people to be a part of Tennessee's rich cultural and creative landscape. To do this, we depend upon opportunities afforded us to be seen and supported by the community as something more than peripheral.  Our work in this regard has been recognized nationally as a model. Our challenge now is to increase the access, understanding, and appreciation of Southern Word here at home - more young people, more visibility, more partners, and yes, more local investment in what is becoming an integral part of classrooms and programs around the city.

Service Categories
Primary Category:	Youth Development  - Youth Development Programs
Secondary Category:	Arts, Culture & Humanities  - Arts Education
Tertiary Category:	Unknown  - Unknown

Areas Served

We presently conduct residencies and workshops in nine counties across Tennessee including Davidson, Sumner, Robertson, Rutherford, Shelby, McNairy, Coffee, and Williamson Counties. Through our major events, we reach out to schools and poetry groups across Tennessee. We plan on delivering more workshops, residencies, and events statewide as interest grows.

TN - Coffee

TN - Davidson

TN - Williamson

TN - Rutherford

TN - Sumner

TN - Montgomery

TN - Robertson

TN - Other

TN - Other

TN - Tennessee (Entire State)