of Prince George's County

The Inaugural Arlington County, Virginia

Youth Poet Laureate

Amasa Maleski

PRECIOUS FOREMAN - THE 2023 PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY YOUTH POET LAUREATE

YPL PROGRAMS ARE SPROUTING EVERYWHERE! In his new role as Poetry Director for Words Beats & Life, Patrick Washington is helping to craft new Laureates for other areas outside of Prince George's County.  Let's welcome these new young leaders!

SAINEY CEESAY, OUR 2021 YPL, has continued making her mark beyond her Laureateship by lending her voice for multiple virtual events & speaking engagements.  She was recently commissioned to write and perform an original poem dedicated to the grand opening of the new Hyattsville Library and absolutely blew everyone away!  Everyone loved her poem so much that after  her standing ovation, the PGCMLS official asked for a copy of the poem to frame in the Library's front entrance - now THAT'S how to leave an impression!

ABOVE: Precious Foreman is welcomed into the Dialect Family by outgoing 2022 YPL Imani West, left and Prince George's County Poet Laureate, Sistah Joy Alford, right, at the PG Ballroom on Feb 25th, 2023

MEET 15 YEAR OLD

PRECIOUS FOREMAN!!

Marissa recently teamed up with 2022 YPL Imani West to shoot & edit a video for Imani's original poem titled, "My Hair My Crown"

"My Hair My Crown" is a short film that follows Imani as she explores her hair journey through the years & how her hair affects how she is perceived by the world around her. The video features Poetry and interviews recorded at the beautiful Wellspring Manor Spa and at Natural Touch Hair Studios in Upper Marlboro.

Check out the video below!

Youth Poets

POETS, EMCEES & CREATIVE WRITERS AGES 13 TO 19, here is your springboard to launching a career in creative writing, performance poetry & community activism! We are searching for youth leaders who are committed to civic and community engagement & promoting change through the arts. We also partner with various county entities & non profits to create opportunities for our young artists. for more info, Contact us at dialectofpgcounty@gmail.com

​PRINCE GEORGE'S​

COUNTY HAS A

BRAND NEW

YOUTH POET 

LAUREATE!!

ONCE AGAIN THIS SPRING, The Dialect Poets and YPL Ambassadors in conjunction with our family at Words Beats & Life made a powerful one-day residencies at Montpelier House Museum in Laurel, Maryland as part of their, "Fighting Destiny Tour". 

​​Meet the Ambassadors

The Inaugural Montgomery County, Maryland

Youth Poet Laureate

"Sasa" Aakil

One Youth Poet Laureate. Five Ambassadors.  Six youth poets who are paving the way to the future.

LEARN MORE

CONGRATULATIONS ALSO TO OUR NEW YOUTH POET AMBASSADORS

DIANA PLATA - Glenn Dale

ARIANNA BOSLEY - Brandywine

CHIMWEKELE OKORO - New Carrollton

KIARA RAMIREZ - Beltsville

SANIYA PEARSON - Fort Washington

​

NOW THE WORK BEGINS as our YPL & Ambassadors begin traveling the county sharing the stage with county officials at festivals, town hall meetings and other community events in need of a youth perspective.  This is the first step to a professional career as a writer & public speaker - any organizations interested in booking any of our youth poets for  any functions, please contact Patrick Washington at 301 237 6684 or Neville Adams at 240 426 2629

15 YEAR OLD Precious Foreman of Landover, Maryland is the 2023 Prince George's County Youth Poet Laureate and an Honor Roll student with a passion for storytelling. She says she writes to express her complex emotions & messages to the world. Precious was awarded first place in the Hip Hop Workshops, "What Matters to You" 2022 poetry campaign and 2nd place in the Frederick Douglass Oratorical Speech Contest. Precious was a Junior Arts Scholarship recipient in September 2021, and was the Middle School Global Journey Scholars award winner for that year. Precious will spend her year as YPL embarking on a reading tour of various PGCMLS Libraries, participating in writing workshops, and implementing a campaign along with her fellow Youth Poet Ambassadors to bring the spotlight on teen mental health awareness.​

SAINEY IN ACTION!

​​​​DIALECT USA, LLC  recognizes and celebrates the importance of the spoken, the written and the rhythmic word no matter where it originates. We realize that even though our inflections & use of language may change between age, race, gender and cultural lines, it is the sound of our VOICES that when properly harnessed, can become the most powerful tool known to humanity through shared experiences, affirmations of love, pleas for peace and declarations of being.

DIALECT OF PRINCE GEORGE’S COUNTY, MD provides artists with the space for expression and the skills for growth as practitioners of the stage arts.  We understand that for many, a simple opportunity is the much needed bridge that can lead to success, and so we provide not only basic training in these areas, but we partner with additional County organizations in creating avenues & windows that will assist in cultivating full-fledged careers in the arts for both youth and for young adults.

PAST LAUREATES

​

Imani West (2022) Sainey Ceesay (2021) Marissa Michel (2020) Mi'Jan Credle (2019) 

                         Michaela Lacy (2018) Samantha Jackson (2017) and Dominique Holder (2016)

Her poetry performance begins at 39:00

THE YOUNG POETS were especially interested in Montpelier's "Hidden Spaces" presentation, which explores the side entrances, passageways & sleeping areas for the enslaved which were tucked away throughout the mansion. 
WE ALSO LEARNED the stories of resilience & resistance from our people - We learned at every year, there were at least 30 instances of runaway slaves from Montpelier.  

AFTER EACH TOUR, everyone went exploring on their own, some sat outside in the courtyard, some stayed inside & asked questions of our guides, others walked along the trail surrounding the property - writing & reflecting.
 

WE ARE INTERNATIONAL! Here, our 2019 & 2021 Prince George's Laureates are interviewed by BBC News about The Amanda Gorman Effect

GRATITUDE GOES OUT to our 2022 YPL Imani West for the leadership, grace & creativity shown throughout her laureateship, touching hearts & minds everywhere from community centers to the Kennedy Center! Her soft-spoken yet magnetic performances has inspired hundreds across the DMV, even earning herself an internship at The White House! Way to go, Imani!

OUR 2020 COUNTY YOUTH POET LAUREATE, MARISSA MICHEL, has proven herself to be a multi-layered artist, moving from poetry to digital art, and now to FILMAKING! 

Marissa has written, directed & edited two short films titled, "Transience" and "Summer of the Cicadas" which are both selections in the experimental category of the 2022 All American High School Film Festival!!

They will screen at the AMC Empire 25 Theater in NYC this October - CONGRATULATIONS, Marissa!!