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���ϲ����� Law students crafted their own pentameters and proclamations in a poetry contest that commemorated the 2021 National Day of Writing.

The Third Annual “High Rhymes and Misdemeanors” Poetry Slam on October 29 featured four original student works plus performances by an ���ϲ����� Law professor and an ���ϲ����� Law staff member.

First place went to “Ode to Schmerd,” a poem by Emmanuel Agyemang-Dua L’22 that references an alter ego used in Professor Steve Friedland’s criminal law courses. His prize? A $75 Visa gift card.

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“Ode to Schmerd”

For this law school learning I must be a nerd

Late nights reading and briefing, but I take some time and I wonder

Will they ever catch Schmerd?

He’s often seen at legal grounds, soliciting the 1Ls

Especially when they’re busy, focused on finals

Schmerd is a menace, Schmerd is a tool

Schmerd is the morally blameworthy character you see around school

Schmerd will embezzle, steal, and even kill

But Schmerd will never do it alone, he lacks the skill

His specialty is to entice

Collusion his device

But he’s never caught in the act

They will never catch him

That’s a fact.

His intentions are plain but not too nefarious

He may punch and hit you but nothing too dangerous

He was seen last week conversing with Fred

They said it was conspiracy, but they’ll never catch Schmerd.

***

“I entered the poetry competition last year as well and enjoy creative writing,” Agyemang-Dua said. “Since being in law school, it has been an opportunity for me to express myself in another form other than legal writing.”

Classmates who took part in the competition offered similar motivations for their participation.

“I was excited, nervous, and moved by this experience, and I learned I can have another way to express myself through words,” said Atlanta Woodall L’23, whose performance of “Roots That Grow” with Jean Rice L’23 won the poetry slam’s People’s Choice Award. “I loved how that made me feel and wanted to let people know who I am while allowing myself to be vulnerable and expressing that in a new way. … I am very grateful for the people that came out and supported competitors who shared their poetry!”

Hosted by ���ϲ����� Law’s Legal Method & Communication Program with support from ���ϲ�����’s Center for Writing Excellence, the poetry slam offered students a way to express themselves outside of the legal writing tradition.

“You need a creative outlet. You need to be able to have some fun. You have to have a way to speak your mind in a way that is not costly,” said Writing Specialist Janet Keefer. “We’re trying to make this a tradition that coincides with the National Day on Writing to show that … writing is something that can be enjoyed by the writer, and it is something that is enjoyed by those who read or hear it.”

Participants in the 2021  “High Rhymes and Misdemeanors” Poetry Slam

• Emmanuel Agyemang-Dua L’22
• Assistant Professor Tiffany Atkins L’11
• Staff member Stephanie Kennedy
• Cassandra Saxton L’23
• Charlie Schatz L’21
• Jean Rice L’23
• Atlanta Woodall L’23

Judges

• Assistant Professor Tiffany Atkins L’11
• Associate Professor Catherine Wasson
• Writing Specialist Janet Keefer