“InsideOut was a launching pad for a lot of my career.” Talitha Johnson was a student at Detroit’s Mackenzie High in 2000 when InsideOut’s Writer-in-Residence program came into her life. Today she is a Marketing Manager at the Detroit Regional Partnership, a regional economic development…
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One of my writers said, ‘This sets my whole week up right.’ That became our mantra, our through line. It was the participants’ commitment to showing up, the generous trust they put in me, and the kindness they showed to one another that laid the…
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It’s an understatement to say that InsideOut has changed over the past five years – from staffing to programming to fundraising, we have grown. While I often reflect on the “state of the organization,” my leadership has also changed over the last five years. In…
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Last year’s Write-A-Thon was the first time since middle school I attempted any kind of crowdfunding. Growing up in Detroit’s suburbs, my familial attitude was that it was not nice to bother people with yet another invitation to buy Girl Scout cookies, wrapping paper, or…
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Daniella Toosie-Watson Writer-in-Residence InsideOut’s Writer-in-Residence Program gives students a space to be reminded of their power. Daniella is a Writer-in-Residence who brings her background as a poet, visual artist and educator to her work with elementary school students through InsideOut. Beginning as a University of…
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Mahogany Jones Writer-in-Residence Even before COVID-19, the spaces that InsideOut and Citywide Poets carves out of time are magical. With our experiences and creativity we get to shape alternate worlds where we are beautiful and powerful and unashamed and far from average. Recording and performance…
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Catharine Batsios Writer-in-Residence I want every one of my students to have the weekly reminder that their thoughts are rich, robust, & their brains are unique, & always good enough. Catharine, a poet originally from Flint, Michigan, is a Writer-in-Residence and Citywide Poets Site Leader…
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There are a lot of reasons for students to tune out or seem uninspired. The real key is for me, the teaching artist, to be a lighthouse, steady in shining the light for them to come to shore if they can. Rey is a writer…
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From Zoom classes to Facebook live streams and InsideOut At Home lessons, InsideOut’s programs have looked a little different this year for both students and teaching artists. But despite all of the new challenges of virtual teaching, our Writers-in-Residence have made the most of this…
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