BMCC Has Highest Number of Selectees Among CUNY Students in “All Write!” Symphony Space Event

On Thursday, May 11, selected original writing by nine students in the Adult and Continuing Education (ACE) division of the BMCC Center for Continuing Education and Workforce Development at 25 Broadway in lower Manhattan was read in a moving performance by professional actors at the citywide event, All Write!

The annual All Write! event is connected to the acclaimed Selected Shorts program at Symphony Space, 2537 Broadway at 95^th Street, on the upper west side of Manhattan.

According to Madeline Cohen, director of the All Write! program, out of almost 270 submissions, 14 CUNY students were selected, and of those, nine were from BMCC.

Now in its 29^th season, this year’s All Write! event actually began on January 27, when the program hosted students from CUNY adult literacy sites — as well as those from programs at the NYC Department of Education, public libraries and community-based organizations — to attend an event featuring actors reading short pieces of writing on the Symphony Space stage.

Symphony Space then provided a curriculum guide based on those writings, to generate student writing that was biographical, fictional or both. The students then had the option of submitting their writing for consideration to be included in the May 11 event.

“These activities help students engage with the texts and supports their writing of original pieces,” says Solange Farina, a BMCC ACE instructional coordinator. “Students love the variety of writing they read, plus getting to do their own creative writing.”

In the process, she explains, students learn literary devices, editing skills, the power of word choice and more.

“But what is most powerful is finding their voice and telling their stories in different ways,” says Ms. Farina. “And the culminating second performance at Symphony Space with the professional actors is so powerful and beautiful. It has never disappointed, and still excites and inspires me after 30 years of participating in the program.”

The culminating event, in which selected student writing is read by professional actors, took place May 11 on the main stage at Symphony Space.

The selected student writing  was from CUNY adult literacy programs, including BMCC, as well as from programs within the NYC Department of Education, community-based organizations and public libraries throughout New York City.

View the May 11, morning performance here. View the afternoon performance here.

BMCC students whose work was selected for inclusion in All Write! from the ESOL class led by Maritza Arrastia include:

Simple, by Claudie Lema

The Debt, by Antonio Melenciano

The Bag, by Maria Paniagua

I Wish I’d Never Had Those Calls, by Anastasia Proskurina

BMCC students whose work was selected for inclusion in All Write! from the GED/HSE class led by Ameerah Michelle include:

What If?, by Reyanna Beckford

From Faraway I Call, by Fabiana Medina

I Just Want My Coffee, by Luis Rivera

Another Hectic Day, by Yasmine Rojas

BMCC students whose work was selected for inclusion in All Write! from the ESOL class led by Solange Farina include:

Where I’m From, by Eugenia Joaquim

 

For more information about Adult and Continuing Education (ACE) at the BMCC Center for Continuing Education and Workforce Development at 25 Broadway in lower Manhattan, email ace@bmcc.cuny.edu or call (212) 346-8890.