Wytheville Community College is pleased to announce the winners of its inaugural Virginia Community College System Poetry & Visual Arts Competition.
Participating students submitted original poetry and visual artworks during February and March interpreting the theme “I belong.”
The program aimed to foster a sense of community and belonging at WCC and across the VCCS. Twenty of the 23 colleges in the VCCS participated in this first year of the Poetry & Arts Competition, which was supported by the VCCS Advisory Council on Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Culture.
This year’s winners are:
Visual Arts
Third place, Visual Arts, Kiale Ward. Kiale’s painting is titled, “The Moon, the Stars, and Me.” She is from Abingdon, and is in WCC’s Dental Hygiene program.
Second place, Visual Arts, Holly Montgomery. Holly’s mixed media piece is titled, “I Belong: A Whimsical Celebration.” She is studying Business Management and Leadership at WCC, and is from Wytheville.
First place, Visual Arts, Makaela Umberger. Makaela’s painting is titled, “Wythe Connection.” She is a WCC dual enrollment student from Wytheville.
Poetry
Third place, Poetry, Madison Wardwell. Madison’s poem is titled, “Be You.” She is from Cana, Virginia, and is a dual enrollment student at Carroll County High School.
Second place, Poetry, Jason Bailey. Jason’s poem is titled, “That Muse.” Jason is from Fries, Virginia, and is studying Human Services at WCC.
First place, and newly named “WCC Poet Laureate 2024,” is Stevie Freeman. Stevie wrote a collection of poems titled, “I Belong” and is from Ivanhoe, Virginia. Stevie is completing her AA & S in General Studies at WCC.
Deanna Bradberry, WCC Public Relations and Development Coordinator, said, “Congratulations to this year’s winners. WCC could not be prouder of a group of students who took the time out of their studies to participate. Congratulations, as well, to all who entered the competition. The judges stated that the decisions to choose first through third place in each category were difficult. WCC encourages each of the contest participants to keep writing and keep creating.”
Winners at WCC received award certificates and monetary prizes. Stevie Freeman, WCC’s new Poet Laureate, also won a spot to compete for statewide honors. College poetry winners from across Virginia will participate at a live performance of their original theme-related poems at the Dickinson Fine and Performing Arts Center at Piedmont Virginia Community College in Charlottesville on April 6, and a chance to be named “Poet Laureate” of Virginia’s Community Colleges. A panel of distinguished judges will determine the winner of the competition based on the individual’s original poetry, a private interview, and a performance of their poem.
Select works of visual art from participating colleges also will be on display at PVCC on April 6 and at the Virginia Community College System’s New Horizons systemwide conference in Roanoke the following week.
“The work of our students is wonderful,” said VCCS Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Officer Carla Kimbrough. “I’m so grateful to college coordinators who organized the competitions at their colleges, and the judges at the college level who helped us find true gems of creativity in this inaugural event. We are so excited to showcase the message of belonging from our talented poets and visual artists from so many of our colleges at our April 6 event.”
With the support of Virginia’s Humanities, the winners from all 20 participating colleges will have their poetry and visual arts featured in a book to be published this summer. The Virginia Humanities grant also supported professional development for the college poet laureates and top visual artists.
