Sankofa English Initiative

Spring 2023

• Sankofa English Initiative, Spirit Award Recipient
• Sankofa English 102 - Outstanding Student Award, Yasmin Sanders

Facebook post reveals students’ publishing honor  

It’s not every day an academic faculty member scrolls through her Facebook feed to discover that two of her students, Marjai Cooks and Yolanda Smith, are being honored as published poets.

“I’m watching the video, and I see Yolanda’s picture first and then Marjai’s,” said English instructor Dr. Monica Riley. “I had to play it twice because I thought I was seeing things.”

What Riley saw was a video collage from Hardy Publications, announcing the winners of a nationwide poetry competition for inclusion in this spring’s edition of “The Black Girl Poetry Scrapbook,” an anthology series.

“These anthologies bring together creatives who have put years of passion into their work, and also women who may not have a career in the arts but still have a story to tell,” Riley said.

In February, Riley introduced students in her Sankofa English 101 class to a lesson on poetry writing, following an exploration of Harlem Renaissance poets including Langston Hughes, Countee Cullen, Claude McKay and Gwendolyn Bennett.

Cooks and Smith received praise from their classmates when they read their original poems aloud, and Riley encouraged the students to submit their poems to the scrapbook, a publication with which the instructor was familiar.

“Poetry is a phenomenal way to express yourself,” Cooks said. “I’ve appreciated this class because it taught me not only about expression, but it enhanced my vocabulary as well. I can now journal my life in ways I didn’t before.”

Hardy Publications published both submissions. Cooks was recognized for her free verse poem regarding cultural pride as a Black woman in America, and Smith was recognized for her haiku regarding self-acceptance and validation.

“Dr. Riley has a way of getting you out of your comfort zone,” Smith said. “She builds on your strengths and weaknesses, and with her expertise, she develops in you a confidence you’ve never known before.”

The Sankofa English Initiative, launched in fall 2021, is a themed approach to satisfy traditional English 101 or English 102 requirements. “Sankofa” is a term from the Akan ethnic group of Ghana, Africa, with a few related meanings. Two of the most common interpretations are “reaching back to propel forward” and “to fetch what is at risk of being left behind.” These special English sections are open to all CSN students.

February 2024, Sankofa Black History Essay Contest Winners:

1st place - Nicholas Simms, Sankofa English 102

‌2nd place - Ania Yarborough, Sankofa English 102

3rd place - Kei-Lani Hall, Sankofa English 101

‌Sankofa Research Scholarship Recipient: ‌Esmeralda Cordero, Sankofa English 101

Spring 2024 Student Success Stories

• Sankofa English 101 student, Hamid Yegan, will be graduating in May 2024 with an AAS Degree in Air Conditioning Technology.
• Sankofa English 102 student, Karla Lopez, is a National Education for Women's Leadership (NEW) fellowship recipient. She is currently working toward earning an AA degree in Special Education.