Local Southwest Virginia Community College Students Triumph in Statewide Poetry & Visual Arts Competition

Southwest Virginia Community College has named the winners of its inaugural Virginia Community College System (VCCS) Poetry & Visual Arts Competition. The contest, with the theme 'I belong', involved 20 of the 23 colleges in the VCCS. Nikki Looney, Faith Eliana White, and Kaitlyn Nelson won in the poetry category, while Val Johnson, Andrew Ellis, and Emily Jackson won in the visual arts category.

The VCCS Advisory Council on Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Culture backed the competition. The winners will perform their original poems live at the Dickinson Fine and Performing Arts Center at Piedmont Virginia Community College in Charlottesville on April 6. A panel of judges will select the 'Poet Laureate' of Virginia’s Community Colleges based on the poetry, a private interview, and the performance.

Selected visual art from the competition will be exhibited at PVCC on April 6 and at the VCCS’s New Horizons conference in Roanoke the next week. Carla Kimbrough, VCCS Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Officer, thanked the coordinators and judges for their help in organizing the event.

The competition is also a celebration of student creativity. The winning poetry and visual arts will be included in a book to be published this summer, with support from Virginia’s Humanities. The Virginia Humanities grant also funded professional development for the college poet laureates and top visual artists.

In summary, the VCCS Poetry & Visual Arts Competition has successfully promoted a sense of community among the students. It has recognized their creative talents and provided a platform for them to display their work. The upcoming live performance, art exhibition, and book publication are highly anticipated.

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