On Tuesday, January 16, 2024, the AYCGL and Oprah Winfrey Programs are co-sponsoring a virtual experience with Clint Smith. Mr. Smith will present on the topic, The Poetics of Racial Healing: Holding the Pain and Possibilities Together. Mr. Smith is the author of the New York Times bestseller, How the Word is Passed: A Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America, which won the National Book Critics Circle Award for Nonfiction and was named on the New York Times 10 Best Books of 2021. Mr. Smith also authored the New York Time bestselling poetry collection Above Ground and the award-winning poetry collection Counting Descent. He is a staff writer at The Atlantic. Please see this NPR article on Mr. Smith’s How the Word is Passed: https://www.npr.org/2021/06/02/1002027683/how-the-word-is-passed-teaches-the-importance-of-reckoning-with-history. Mr. Smith is also featured in the podcast, Press Pause. In episode 8, https://open.spotify.com/episode/2o9VLsrYXC4EWbflrHYgMs, Mr. Smith shares his personal story and inspirations. Oprah Winfrey scholars are expected to attend.