Urban Mtn.Voices           

Urban MOUNTAIN VOICES

Uncensored Youth Spoken Word and Hip Hop Performance Poetry

Monroe County, PA

Mission

Urban Mountain Voices is dedicated to strengthening the community by embracing its multicultural diversity through the empowerment of young adults ages 13-20 years throughout Monroe County.  UMV achieves this by providing FREE, safe and uncensored creative writing and performance workshops, adult and peer mentoring, public performance opportunities and the publication of works. Participants are provided the education, resources and opportunities for developing critical inquiry skills to address issues of Social Justice while achieving a high level of literacy necessary to becoming effective leaders in the community. 

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UMV is inclusive. We do not discriminate on the basis of content or academic performance, nor on the basis of race, class, religion, political alignment, gender, or sexual orientation.  Enrollment in a public or private academic institution is not a prerequisite for participation in UMV programs.

UMV is committed to developing a NEPA Youth Poetry Slam Team to participate in regional and national competitions including the annual Brave New Voices.

Core Values

            We believe:

• Teens are generally undervalued in society contributing to their disenfranchisement ultimately resulting in the decline of that society

• The health of a community can be measured by the positive contributions (or lack thereof) made by it’s teen population

• Creative writing has a therapeutic value by providing the means for self expression necessary to address crisis, chaos and confusion inherent in adolescence

• Without resources to appropriately deal with such crisis, there is a significantly greater propensity for teens to act out destructively

• Teens need safe space where they are free to be themselves without judgment or criticism; where they trust enough to express themselves in their own vernacular, honestly and openly without being censored

• Peer mentoring keeps teens engaged while providing consensual validation resulting in greater self acceptance, building a positive self image and improving academic performance

• Hip Hop Poetry Performance is a safe and effective device for confronting personal, political and social issues

• Performance and publication of individual work builds confidence while developing a strong sense of identity

• Participating in poetry competitions/slams encourages the desire to achieve a higher standard of writing and performance

 
UMV Steering Committee:

Bernard Newns – UMV Finance

Leslie Antonette – NPWP, Development

Lisa Brito-Greene - Community Outreach

Program Planning Committee:

Mary Ann Lewis –Young Adult Programs, Associated Libraries of Monroe County

Deb Lowenburg – Librarian, Pleasant Valley High School

Jennifer Pandolfo – Teen Program Coordinator, Western Pocono Library

UMV Advisory TEAM

Michael Cirelli – Executive Director, Urban Word NYC

Greg Corbin – Founder/Director, Philly Youth Poetry Movement

Reenah Golden, Chair,  National Youth Spoken Word Coalition

Hodari Davis– National Outreach Director, Youth Speaks, San Francisco

Anna West– Word Play, Baton Rouge Louisiana

Tricia McGarvin: Poet , Teaching Artist, UMV Founder/Program Director

Tricia first performed her original poetry in 1995 at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe in NYC. She continues to write and perform throughout the area.  Relying upon her experience as a trained voice actress, creative writer and poet, Tricia brings the art of Spoken Word to students ages 13-19 years. Performance poetry combines the disciplines of acting, creative writing, and story telling.  Her experience and talent as a voice actress earned her a successful career as a radio producer/writer/announcer of nearly 20 years including service at:  (National Public Radio, WFUV, WHTZ, WKTU –New York City), national voice-over talent for radio and television (AFTRA/SAG) and professional MC.  She's written and produced numerous feature stories for NPR's Morning and Weekend Edition programs. Tricia also writes original music and lyrics.  While living in NYC this singer/songwriter formed a band and performed all original music at THE BITTER END .

Tricia has also had her articles appear in PDX Willamette Week Magazine and the national trade publication Five on Five.

While living in the Pacific Northwest, Tricia became a certified Grief Counseling Facilitator for the Dougy Center in Portland, Oregon.  She worked closely with young children and young adults ages 4 to 17 who had recently experienced the death of a loved one.  The highly specialized training included Art Therapy, Play Therapy, Explosive Energy Exercises, and Group Therapy. 

Recently Tricia completed 70 hours of Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Awareness Training through Women’s Resources of Monroe County and is a HOT LINE  volunteer.

She is currently completing her BA in Creative Writing at East Stroudsburg University with expected completion in Fall 2012.

Tricia resides in Effort, PA with her husband Richard and 9 year old son Tyler.