BID Fellows Program
This year, we are planning new and exciting programs that will further our mission of inspiring students to do the write thing. We are publishing a "Best of Book-in-a-Day" anthology, and next year we will visit other countries to spread the BID mission. In preparation of our work abroad, we have instituted, for the first time, a BID Fellows Program for writers and educators who have exhibited serious interest, and/or a commitment to, creative literacy and literary work with young adult audiences. This year, our Founding Director, Kwame Alexander, has awarded eight fellowships.
The BID Fellows program provides structured and unstructured time and space for writers and educators to develop new work, at a villa located in Montespertoli, Chianti Area, Tuscany, Italy. We are pleased to congratulate the following writers on being selected as 2010 BID Fellows in Italy, June 26-July 17, 2010:
JENNIFER BACON—Jennifer, founder of Black Women Writing, received her PhD in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Maryland. She is the 2009 recipient of Poetry Alive and the 2008 recipient of the Pursue the Dream: Chris Mazza Award for Poetry Therapy. Bacon is the author of Culturally Responsive Poetry: The Lived Experience of African American Adolescent Girl Poets soon to be published. She is also the co-author of the article Examining Teachers' Beliefs About African American Male Students in a Low-Performing High School featured in Teachers College Record in 2010. Bacon has presented at several conferences including the American Educational Research Association.
DANA DAVIDSON—A graduate of the University of Michigan, with a Masters in Educational Administration from Wayne State University, Ms. Dana Davidson loves working to bring literature to life for high school students at her Alma Mater, Cass Technical High School, where she is a veteran high school Advanced Placement English Teacher. She was the 2001 winner of the Newsweek/WDIV Outstanding Teacher Award. She is the author of two critically acclaimed Young Adult novels Played, and Jason & Kyra, a love story that Booklist said "Teens won't be able to stop reading" and an American Library Association Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Adult Readers. Dana has been a featured speaker at writers' conferences, the ALA conference, the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) conference, and libraries, schools, and bookstores around the country. She is currently hard at work raising her two teenagers, amusing and delighting her husband, writing a third YA novel, and learning Italian phrases!
TINESHA DAVIS—Having graduated Summa Cum Laude with dual degrees in Database Technology and Information Systems with an emphasis in programming, Tinesha authored two books that have nothing to do with engineering—a collection of poetry, All Black Girls Ain't Got Rhythm and other urban hymns, and a novel, Holler at the Moon. With these achievements she made it official: she is a writer who happens to play computer engineer by day.
KIM HARDWICK—During the fourteen years as a classroom educator, Kim Hardwick taught in the NYC school system, at Copiague High School on Long Island, and even found herself teaching Special Education for a brief year in Savannah, Georgia. Currently Kim is the K-12 ELA Director in the Hauppauge Public School District and has also served as a professional developer in the area of ELA, vocabulary instruction, differentiation and literacy strategies.
VAN G. GARRETT (also known as Fui Koshi) is an internationally celebrated artist and author. As a visual artist, Van's / Fui's photography, videos, and paintings have been on display or utilized by the Museum of Fine Arts Houston; the University of Rhode Island; Rice University; the International Film Channel (IFC); the Indie Black Film Festival; the Aurora Picture Show; HBO's The Wire: Spoken Word Battle; The Source; and Capitol Records. As a literary artist, Van has received numerous awards and fellowships, including a Dr. Kwame Nkrumah International Study Scholarship; a Poets & Writers, Inc. Readings / Workshops Grant; an Archie D. and Bertha H. Walker Foundation Scholarship to attend a Fine Arts Work Center Fellowship; a Hurston/Wright Fellowship for poetry; two Callaloo Creative Writing Fellowships; and a Great River Arts Institute Fellowship.
Marjory Wentworth—Marjory is the Poet Laureate of South Carolina. Educated at Mt. Holyoke College and Oxford University, she received her M.A. in English Literature and Creative Writing from New York University. Her poems have appeared in numerous books and magazines, and she has twice been nominated for The Pushcart Prize.
DEANNA NIKAIDO—Ms. Nikaido is the author of two poetry books, Voice Like Water (2009), and Vibrating With Silence (2007). She is a graduate of California Art Center College of Design with a degree in Illustration.
ROBIN D. HIGHBERG—Robin can often be found knee deep in books, papers, pens and the angst and excitement of middle schoolers as they work together building literacy skills. She is a poet, a mom, a teacher, and a woman who likes to travel and experience cultures around the world. Robin was called to teach after her first career as a Personal Shopper at Nordstrom. From dressing executives and soothing egos in front of the mirror, she's gone to the euphoric maelstrom of teaching. As an English as a Second Language teacher for Fairfax County Public Schools, Robin is a skilled speaker and has developed and presented many workshops for the county on various topics. She aspires to share her joy and love of writing with all students, so they too can learn to share their inner voice. Robin holds a BS in Industrial Management and Mathematics from Carnegie Mellon University, and an MEd in English as a Second Language from Marymount University.
