A Williams Life
A Williams Life explores the lives and legacies of Williams College graduates.
A Williams Life
Mayda del Valle '00 – Chicago Poet Laureate
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Poet, performer, and educator Mayda del Valle '00 was born and raised on Chicago's South Side and is now the city's Poet Laureate.
Del Valle found early acclaim on the stage. At age 23, she became the Grand Slam Champion at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe and went on to win the National Poetry Slam that same year — the youngest poet, and the first Latina, to do so. She appeared in six episodes of HBO's Russell Simmons Presents Def Poetry and was a contributing writer and original cast member of the Tony Award-winning Def Poetry Jam on Broadway.
Her work has since been featured in The New York Times among other publications, and Smithsonian Magazine named her one of America's Young Innovators in the Arts and Sciences. In 2009, she performed at the White House at the invitation of President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama.
Del Valle is the author of two poetry collections, A South Side Girl's Guide to Love and Sex and The University of Hip-Hop. She received Williams' Bicentennial Medal in 2008.
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Senior Producer: Jon Earle ('09)
