Rosed Serrano

---

Hello, I am a rising senior in the African American Studies Department and I will be completing a poetry thesis advised by Professor Michael Dickman. I participated in my first poetry workshop the fall semester of my sophomore year. Since then, I made sure to take a poetry class every semester. Workshops were both an opportunity to get feedback on my writing and for me to be vulnerable with my classmates in a new way. When we would meet up, we dealt seriously with what was presented on the page. And through this, I learned not to be afraid of my voice, which set me on a journey to find it. Often these workshops, like writing poetry, were therapeutic. There was no right or wrong answer in the classroom, just an expression of my present moment and present self.

I like to think that I have lived many lives on Princeton’s campus and taking a workshop was a way for me to document my journey through this very particular space. As a peer advisor, I am able to give advice both about the poetry workshop application process, studying abroad during your undergraduate career, and balancing academic work that is outside the arts with creative writing classes.