Slam poetry is arguably one of the hottest new forms of creative expression — Penn State W.O.R.D.S. (Writers Organized to Represent Diverse Stories) aims to bring this emerging art form to the Penn State community.

The organization’s second annual State Poetry Slam will take place Wednesday, March 15 in the HUB’s Freeman Auditorium at 7 p.m. It’s the last appearance Penn State’s national poetry slam team will make before traveling to Chicago for the annual College Unions Poetry Slam Invitational.

CUPSI is an annual slam poetry tournament hosted by the Association of College Unions International (ACUI). Last year was Penn State’s first time competing, and the team fought against dozens of other college teams for one ultimate spot as ACUI champion.

The slam will feature this year’s CUPSI team, as well as noted slam poet Siaara Freeman, who will host the event and act as honorary MC. You might even remember this year’s team — comprised of poets David Gaines, Abby Kennedy, Davon Clark, and Rabiyatu Jalloh — from last semester’s W.O.R.D.S Slam Final in which they each competed for spots on the team. The group will showcase both old work and a variety of new material one final time before the tournament.

If you’re interested in helping out Penn State’s 2017 CUPSI team get to the competition, you can make a contribution here to aid in covering travel costs for the event. For more information on W.O.R.D.S., feel free to check out its website or learn more about ACUI and CUPSI as a whole by checking out the official webpage.

About the Author

Emma Dieter

Emma is a senior from the ever-popular "right-outside" Philly area studying labor employment relations and PR. She's also the Student Life editor for Onward State. She has been a Penn Stater from cradle and will continue to bleed blue and white, 'til grave. She loves trashy romance novels, watching Netflix, and crying over cute videos of dogs. If you ever want to talk more with her about how great she is, or simply have other inquiries, feel free to email her at [email protected]

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