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Hakim Bellamy Named Convocation Speaker, Poet in Residence Aug. 17-18 at LMC

Lees-McRae College will hold its Convocation ceremony on Thursday, August 18 at 4 p.m. in Hayes Auditorium. Convocation is an important part of the academic tradition at Lees-McRae. Literally a ‘coming together’ of the College community, Convocation celebrates the beginning of the academic year and welcomes new and returning students to campus. Lees-McRae alumnus Hakim Bellamy ’02 will give the keynote address, “4000 Feet Above Average.” Bellamy will also be a poet in residence on campus August 17-18.

During his time at Lees-McRae, Bellamy majored in biology and minored in English with a communications emphasis, while also playing on the men’s soccer team.

Hakim Bellamy
Hakim Bellamy

Before pursuing his gift of poetry and writing, Bellamy worked as a Quality Assurance Microbiologist for Fortune 500 pharmaceutical company Baxter Healthcare in New Jersey. He was later accepted to graduate school at the University of New Mexico to obtain a M.A. in Communications. Since then, he has been on two national champion poetry slam teams, a national and regional Poetry Slam Champion and holds three consecutive collegiate poetry slam titles at the University of New Mexico. He has traveled the country for performances and speaking engagements, and he has been published in numerous anthologies on inner-city buses. Bellamy became the inaugural Poet Laureate of Albuquerque, New Mexico in 2012, at age 33.

An educator, musician, actor, journalist, playwright and community organizer and father, Bellamy has acquired many awards and accolades, including the Tillie Olsen Award for Creative Writing from the Working Class Studies Association and honorable mention for the Paul Bartlett Ré Peace Prize at the University of New Mexico. He recently concluded a residency at the Santa Fe Art Institute and is currently in his third year fellowship with the Kellogg Foundation. Bellamy is the founder and president of Beyond Poetry LLC.

As poet in residence, Bellamy will hold various events on Wednesday, August 17 that are open to campus and the local community. He will hold a creative writing workshop from 1–2 p.m., a poetry slam from 4–5 p.m. and an informative session, titled “Marketing Yourself as an Entrepreneur,” from 7:15–8 p.m. The three events will be held in Evans Auditorium inside the Cannon Student Center. All events are free and open to the public.

For more information, please contact Kacy Crabtree, associate provost, at crabtree@lmc.edu or 828.898. 8739.

Nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains of western North Carolina, Lees-McRae College is a private, four-year college offering diverse baccalaureate degrees, strong athletic programs and outstanding faculty. With 1,000 students hailing from 31 states and more than 8 countries, Lees-McRae’s broad core curriculum is enhanced by field-specific career preparation and experiential learning. For more information, please visit www.lmc.edu or call 828-898-5241.