The annual Gabriel Zimpritch Poetry Symposium was held in a virtual format this year, with 13 students taking part in a day-long writing workshop and evening poetry reading with poet Kwame Dawes. The event is supported through a donation by the Zimpritch family to Thomas Memorial Library, in memory of son Gabe, CEHS Class of '96. Thirteen students took part, including seniors Raina Sparks, Firdaws Hakiziman, Millie Erikson; juniors Ben Stone, Helen Strout, Bella Rodrigues, Will Altenburg, Marco Hansel; sophomores Rayyaan Hakizimana, Claire McDonald, Owen McAnuff; and freshmen Emma Halter and Lydia Branson.
Reaction to Kwame's work with the students was overwhelmingly positive.
I really enjoyed the symposium overall! We were introduced to new challenges and formatting within our poetry and writing and it was super fun to be creative in those ways!
~Claire McDonald
This was my first year participating in the Zimpritch Symposium and it was a remarkable experience! I worked with an amazing group of peers and a brilliant guest poet, Kwame Dawes. I learned a great deal about poetry writing and myself as a writer. I was proud of the work I produced throughout the day and was very moved by the event in the evening. It was wonderful to be a part of the Symposium and I am very grateful to have been given the opportunity.
Thank you,
Lydia Branson
The Poetry Symposium was a great experience, both for kids who wanted to find their own personal voice as a poet, and for those who wanted to gain better knowledge about writing in general!
More information about Kwame Dawes:
