Free Verse

Free Verse helps kids develop self-understanding and affirm identity through writing projects, creative expression, employment preparation, and college application groundwork. Programs like this make significant improvements in outcomes for kids who have experienced incarceration.

Free Verse engages students in an active process of defining who they are, what they want, and what steps are available to them to make progress toward their goals. These safe opportunities for expression empower kids to reflect on difficult experiences and provide alternative ways to express feelings and organize thoughts.

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Your gift funds further research and development for the extension of the program, both at the CJDC and at additional facilities, and reduces the likelihood of recidivism via literacy development.

Free Verse is extremely proud to call The Hawkins Project our fiscal sponsor. The Hawkins Project, founded by Dave Eggers and Amanda Uhle, creates and funds courageous literary, visual, public, and other creative works with a special emphasis on supporting youth writing centers around the world.