Piscataway High School poetry class students, creative writing magazine club students, and other students interested in English and poetry had the opportunity to travel to the Dodge Poetry Festival on October 18th at the NJPAC in Newark, NJ, where they experienced live performances and panel discussions by acclaimed poets.

The Dodge Poetry Festival is a crossover between the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation and the New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC), which celebrates well known poets in discussions, readings, and conversations focusing on poetry. Every two years for four days, NJPAC transforms into a lively stage of poetry filled with many accomplished poets and spoken word artists. The Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation was established in 1974 as part of the legacy of Mrs.Geraldine Rockefeller Dodge. For over 50 years, the Dodge Foundation has educated lively ecosystems committed to bettering the communities across the state.

A student of the Sentenia creative writing club at Piscataway High School participated in the trip to the festival. Aspiring poet Ayesha Kashif says that she loved the live experience. She enjoyed seeing how different poets incorporated unique techniques into their poems, and how they delivered emotion in their own ways.

Ayesha says, “my favorite poet was Imani Cezanne-her works were super humorous but also emotional and relatable”.
Imani Cezanne is a spoken word poet, writer, and American activist. She lives in Oakland, California, and is the founding president of S.P.E.A.K. (Spoken Poetry Expressed by All Kinds). One of her most known works is “I want to punch all the white people in Oakland”.

Ayesha mentions how the atmosphere felt open and honest, and that there were great points and meaningful insights shared throughout. She enjoyed the experience and said that it was very interesting and knowledgeable. Ayesha says “I learned a lot about different perspectives and gained new ideas, thoughts, and techniques for not just my own pieces, but for my daily mindset as a human being”. She says that she left the festival as a new person, and it was a great learning experience.

A senior at Piscataway High School took part in the trip. Roshni Patnaik, president of the Sentenia creative writing club at Piscataway, says that the Dodge Poetry festival was an amazing experience. She believes that “it was an amazing experience to see poetry live”. Roshni says “meeting so many people was super cool getting to learn about people’s creative processes and how they write”. Her favorite poet was Mahogany L. Browne, and she bought the book Chrome Valley.

Author of multiple poetry collections and books, and winner of the 2024 Paterson Poetry Prize, Mahogany L. Browne is a favorite author of many. She was born in Oakland, California, and received a Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) in writing and activism from the Pratt Institute.  Roshni loved hearing live performances from her, as it felt like “a whole different experience”. Patnaik explains the feeling of hearing the poetry, as she “felt the energy, awe, and passion” through the way people responded to the poems. Roshni says that she “wasn’t a poetry reader before” but the festival sparked a new interest in poetry for her.

English and Contemporary Poetry teacher Christopher Hamas was a chaperone for this trip. Hamas believed that the sessions were “entertaining and thought provoking”. He saw that the poets were dealing with current and timely issues and were impressed with their mature approach to the subject. Hamas believes that it is not easy writing about LGBTQ issues and particularly issues with Palestine.

Hamas and his group were able to see one session of widely published poet and freelance writer, Kai Coggin.
Kai Coggin was born in Bangkok, Thailand and grew up in Southwest Houston. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in poetry and creative writing from Texas University in 2004, and went on to become a high school English teacher. Author of five collections of poetry, Coggin was twice named “Best Poet in Arkansas” by the Arkansas Times and nominated for both Hot Springs Woman and Arkansas state poet laureate of the year.

Hamas was very impressed with how well rounded the poets were, and mentions that many poets he saw really allowed him to see things from other perspectives. Eager to support the poet, Hamas purchased a book from Coggin, Mother of Other Kingdoms.

Both students and teachers found the experience memorable and informative, and they are already looking forward to the next festival in 2026!