Flint, Michigan to Kick-off A Specialized National Literacy Week with Their Poet Laureate Semaj Brown
ncarol.com/10288479

FLINT, Mich. - ncarol.com -- Mayor Sheldon Neeley, and Flint City Council president, Dr. Ladel Lewis are formally announcing The Black Dandelion: Convergent Voice™City of Flint Literacy Week  (BDCVCOFLW) during National Poetry Month, April 2025. Semaj Brown, Flint's Poet Laureate internationally recognized for creating an integrative-literacy education platform from her poem Black Dandelion, will be recognized for her breaking work that has proven to expand literacy capacity, increase critical thinking skills, and build self-esteem via public presentation through a Social Emotional Equitable Learning lens among the children of Flint, and beyond.

"Semaj Brown is a literary visionary. Her passion for poetry and working with young scholars is unmatched. She uses poetry to educate, connect, and ignite the imagination of the next generation of leaders," states Dr. Ladel Lewis.

More on ncarol.com

• Director Sean McNamara Reunites with Award-Winning Cinematographer Shawn Seifert for Upcoming Feature Home
• J. Kenton Pierce Wins Prometheus Award for Best Novel
• Class is in session: Black Beauty Block Party returns to Los Angeles for fourth annual festival
• Heavy Duty Journal Surpasses 1000 Technical Articles for Diesel Technicians and Fleet Managers
• Kolbus Introduces the Next Step in Casemaking Efficiency

The proclamation of The Black Dandelion: Convergent Voice™ City of Flint Literacy Week will formally take place on April 7, 2025 at the Flint City Dome, at 10 a.m.

The week-long celebration will put the Black Dandelion: Convergent Voice™(BDCV) integrative  multimedia education platform into effect. The week will be filled with activities involving the arts and Open Mics, while uplifting the goal of literacy. There will be "Gather and Grow" professional and student presentations, and activities for both the young, and those young at heart. The city-wide games and puzzles are integrated into the activities, making learning a fun intergenerational experience.

The sponsoring Institutions of the week-long festivities are: City of Flint/CVIPI, Genesee Health System, and Molina Healthcare.

The partnering institutions are: Flint Institute of Arts; Gloria Coles Flint Public Library; RxKIDS; Pierians, Inc. Flint; MSO Michigan State Zeta Organization; MCTE- Michigan Council of Teachers of English; University of Michigan-Flint (Selected Departments); Broadside Lotus Press; Insideout Literary Arts; Family Services Contra Costa County, CA; and as collaborators Mott Warsh Gallery home to the Mott Warsh Collection, and more.

More on ncarol.com

• Florida Law Advisers, P.A. Named Best Divorce Firm of 2026 by Expert Law Attorneys
• Sounds of LA County: 27 Parks.108 Concerts. One County
• Only One Flight Stands Between Los Angeles Youth Leaders and a Life-Saving Mission in South Africa
• BumblebeeSmart Announces Partnership with Extreme Kids World to Expand Access to Sensory Wall Panels and Educational Busy Boards
• Stigma Across Borders: Concerns Grow Over Discrimination Against Shincheonji Members Abroad

All the activities for the Black Dandelion: Convergent Voice™ City of Flint Literacy Week are FREE of charge to the public. Community groups that would like to participate in the BDCVCOFLW, or to host their own, email: contact@semajbrown.com for information and deadlines.

About Semaj Brown: She is Flint, Michigan's inaugural Poet Laureate and the recipient of the Academy of American Poets Laureate Fellowship Award, 2021. Semaj was Visiting Artist/Educator/Editor at The Flint Institute of Arts, Art School, 2023. She is the recipient of the 2024 Poetry Foundation Poetry Programs, Partnerships and Innovation Grant. In 2025, the recipient of the Community Violence Intervention and Prevention Initiative Grant for Black Dandelion. Brown is also an award-winning educator and author of the book, Bleeding Fire! Tap the Eternal Spring of Regenerative Light, Broadside Lotus Press. An excerpted recording of Brown reading her poem, Black Dandelion is highlighted in the national AT&T Dream in Black, Black Future Makers Afrofuturistic Lifestyle television commercial.