Honorary Resolution presented to Poet Nikki Giovanni on April 9

April 14, 2009 - PRLog -- The House of Representatives’ Honorary Resolution recognized Ms. Giovanni’s massive body of work and social activism. It was part of the Keystone Honors Academy program featuring Ms. Giovanni.

Ms. Giovanni is a world-renowned poet, writer, commentator, activist, and educator, who brought her spirited lecture and poetry reading to the Dudley Theatre, on the historic quad.

Dr. Tara Kent, Dean of the Keystone Honors Academy, said, “It was an honor to host a scholar of this caliber and fame at Cheyney University, the campus community was inspired by Dr. Giovanni’s presence and words.  We are grateful to have the support of Representative Lowery-Brown, and pleased that she has expressed a commitment to the educational and cultural opportunities Cheyney University provides.”

Ms. Giovanni’s newly published work “Bicycles: Love Poems” was on sale in the Cheyney University Bookstore and at the event on Thursday.  And she graciously held a book signing following the formal program.

Born in Knoxville, Tennessee, she grew up in Lincoln Heights, an all-black suburb of Cincinnati, Ohio. She graduated with honors from Fisk University, her grandfather’s alma mater, in 1968; after graduating from Fisk, she attended the University of Pennsylvania and Columbia University.

Ms. Giovanni’s spoken word recordings have achieved widespread recognition and honors. Her album Truth Is On Its Way, on which she reads her poetry against a background of gospel music, was a top 100 album and received the Best Spoken Word Album given by the National Association of Radio and Television Announcers. And her Nikki Giovanni Poetry Collection, on which she reads and talks about her poetry, was one of five finalists for a Grammy Award.

Her autobiography, Gemini, was a finalist for the National Book Award; Love Poems, Blues: For All the Changes, and Quilting the Black-Eyed Pea were all honored with NAACP Image Awards. Blues: For All the Changes reached #4 on the Los Angeles Times Bestseller list, a rare achievement for a book of poems.

Most recently, her children’s picture book Rosa, about the civil rights legend Rosa Parks, became a Caldecott Honors Book, and Bryan Collier, the illustrator, was given the Coretta Scott King award for best illustration. Rosa also reached #3 on The New York Times Bestseller list.

Cheyney University is the nation’s oldest historically Black institution of higher education.  It is also the only Historically Black College and University (HBCU) in the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education. At its inception, the school successfully provided free classical education for qualified young people, and today the university offers baccalaureate degrees in more than 30 disciplines and six master’s degree programs.  For more information, please visit the website at http://www.cheyney.edu.

Cheyney University of Pennsylvania is a member of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE). PASSHE comprises Pennsylvania’s 14 public universities, with a combined enrollment of more than 112,500, making it the largest provider of higher education in the Commonwealth. The 14 PASSHE universities offer degree and certificate programs in more than 120 areas of study.  Approximately 405,000 PASSHE alumni live and work in Pennsylvania.

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The 14 PASSHE universities are Bloomsburg, California, Cheyney, Clarion, East Stroudsburg, Edinboro, Indiana, Kutztown, Lock Haven, Mansfield, Millersville, Shippensburg, Slippery Rock and West Chester Universities of Pennsylvania.