Skip to main content
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • ’Cuse Conversations Podcast
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Arts & Culture
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • University Statements
  • Syracuse University Impact
  • |
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
Sections
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • University Statements
  • Syracuse University Impact
  • |
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • ’Cuse Conversations Podcast
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Arts & Culture

Point of Contact to Present Annual ‘Cruel April’ Poetry Series

Friday, March 23, 2018, By Rob Enslin
Share
College of Arts and SciencesCommunity

Point of Contact (POC) in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S) will mark National Poetry Month with its annual “Cruel April” poetry series.

Noel Quiñones

Noel Quiñones

Every Thursday in April from 6-8 p.m., one or more visiting poets will read and discuss their work at the POC Gallery, located on the ground floor of the Nancy Cantor Warehouse in Downtown Syracuse (350 W. Fayette St.). The series is

free and open to the public.

For more information, call POC at 315.443.2169, or visit puntopoint.org.

“Cruel April” coincides with the publication of the 11th volume of “Corresponding Voices” (POC, 2018), a bilingual poetry journal co-edited by three members of A&S: Jules Gibbs, part-time instructor of English; Tere Paniagua ’82, executive director of the Office of Cultural Engagement for the Hispanic Community; and Kathryn Everly, professor of Spanish.

“Corresponding Voices” features the work of all five visiting poets, among many others.

They are as follows:

Jessica Scicchitano

Jessica Scicchitano

Thursday, April 5

Noel Quiñones, a Bronx-based Afro-Buricua poet and performer

Thursday, April 12
Jessica Scicchitano ’11, G’14, a Philadelphia-based writer, editor and educator, and Rohan Chhetri, a Nepali-Indian poet in the M.F.A. Program in Creative Writing in A&S

Thursday, April 19
José Sanjinés ’82, G’85, G’90, professor of communication, media and culture at Coastal Carolina University (CCU) in South Carolina

Rohan Chhetri

Rohan Chhetri

Thursday, April 26
Safia Elhillo, a Sudanese-American poet and spoken-word artist from Washington, D.C.

On Friday, April 20, POC will host a launch party for the regional arts journal Stone Canoe(YMCA Arts Branch, 2018) at 6 p.m. Called “Upstate New York Verve,” the party is free and open to the public, and is a collaboration between POC and the Y’s Downtown Writers Center.

For more than four decades, POC has elevated the verbal and visual arts through bilingual book series and poetry editions, an art gallery and a multicultural arts education program called El Punto.

“’Cruel April’ is one of POC’s signature programs,’ Paniagua says. “To be able to engage with established poets and rising stars is what makes this series so highly anticipated. The range of talent and styles onstage is unsurpassed, and the level of intimacy [between poets and the audience] is mesmerizing.”

Sara Felice, associate managing director of the POC Gallery, agrees: “’Cruel April’ builds community, while promoting diversity in language, arts and culture. The series makes poetry come alive, and exemplifies POC’s rich literary legacy.”

José Sanjinés

José Sanjinés

Indeed, this year’s lineup exudes brilliance.

Quiñones is one of the Hispanic Coalition NY’s 40 Under 40 Rising Latino Stars. A veteran of the New York slam scene, he founded Project X, a Bronx-based, grassroots arts organization that sponsors open-mic nights, literary workshops and the popular Slam Series. His poetry has appeared in a variety of outlets, including the Latin American Literary Review, Literary Hub, Pilgrimage Press, The Best of Kweli Print Anthology, Manteca! an Anthology of Afro-Latin@ Poets and Afro Latinx Poetry. Quiñones’ performances are available online at the websites of the Huffington Post, Vibe, Button Poetry, Latina Magazine and Medium. He has received fellowships from Poets House, CantoMundo and The Watering Hole.

Scicchitano is the author of the chapbook “Dear Bucolic Landscape.” Her work also appears in Sixth Finch, as well as Potluck and Prelude magazines. Born and raised in Syracuse, Scicchitano earned a bachelor’s degree in English and an M.F.A. in creative writing from the University, where she was the nonfiction editor for the Salt Hill literary journal. Scicchitano has since held various administrative positions at Syracuse and Onondaga Community College, and has worked in New York City as a tutor and copyeditor.

Chhetri is a University Fellow known for his literary prowess on both sides of the Atlantic. His first book, “Slow Startle” (The (Great) Indian Poetry Collective, 2016), was the inaugural winner of India’s Emerging Poets Prize. He has received fellowships from the Norman Mailer Center in New York and the Sangam House in the South Indian city of Bangalore. In July, he won Daniel Handler’s inaugural Per Diem Poetry Prize, enabling him to publish the forthcoming chapbook, “Jurassic Desire.”

Sanjinés is a Bolivian-born teacher, scholar and writer who has lived in the United States most of his life. At CCU, he teaches and studies Latin American literature and film, semiotics of culture and cinema, linguistics and foreign language pedagogy, intermodal and intercultural communication, and new media studies. Sanjinés also is president of the CCU chapter of the American Association of University Professors. A polyglot with a knowledge of or fluency in six languages, he is a prolific translator, whose publications include “Strolls on the Horizon: Semiotic Frontiers in Julio Cortázar’s Short Narrative” (Peter Lang Publishing, 1994). He also has authored a variety of stories and poetry, as well as a children’s book.

 

Safia Elhillo

Safia Elhillo

Elhillo is the author of “The January Children” (University of Nebraska Press, 2017), and is co-editor with Fatimah Asghar of the forthcoming anthology “Halal, If You Hear Me” (Haymarket Books). A teaching artist at Split This Rock, Elhillo is a prolific poet whose work has appeared in numerous magazines, anthologies and online platforms (including the Academy of American Poets’ Poem-a-Day series and TEDxNewYork). Her poetry has been translated into Arabic, Japanese, Estonian, Portuguese and Greek. She was a founding member of Slam NYU, a two-time collegiate national champion, and a member and coach of the D.C. Youth Poetry Slam Team.

A&S and the Coalition of Museums and Art Centers at Syracuse University co-sponsor “Cruel April,” with support from the Department of Languages, Literatures and Linguistics in A&S and the New York State Council on the Arts.

About Syracuse University

Syracuse University is a private, international research university with distinctive academics, diversely unique offerings and an undeniable spirit. Located in the geographic heart of New York State, with a global footprint, and nearly 150 years of history, Syracuse University offers a quintessential college experience. The scope of Syracuse University is a testament to its strengths: a pioneering history dating back to 1870; a choice of more than 200 majors and 100 minors offered through 13 schools and colleges; nearly 15,000 undergraduates and 5,000 graduate students; more than a quarter of a million alumni in 160 countries; and a student population from all 50 U.S. states and 123 countries. For more information, please visit www.syracuse.edu.

  • Author

Rob Enslin

  • Recent
  • Student’s Mobile Upcycled Clothing Business Turns Trash Into Treasures
    Friday, August 22, 2025, By Diane Stirling
  • Q&A for “Will Work for Food,” a new book exploring labor and the food chain
    Friday, August 22, 2025, By Ellen Mbuqe
  • Chaz Barracks Fuses Art, Scholarship and Community in Summer Residency
    Thursday, August 21, 2025, By News Staff
  • Welcome Week 2025: What You Need to Know
    Tuesday, August 19, 2025, By Kathleen Haley
  • How Otto the Orange Spent Their Summer Vacation (Video)
    Tuesday, August 19, 2025, By News Staff

More In Arts & Culture

Syracuse Stage Announces Auditions for 2025-26 Theatre for the Very Young Production ‘Tiny Martians, Big Emotions’

Syracuse Stage is seeking non-equity actors to audition for the Theatre for the Very Young production of “Tiny Martians, Big Emotions,” conceived and directed by Kate Laissle. The show is a touring educational program as part of the company’s 2025-26…

Art Museum Launches Fall 2025 Season With Dynamic, Interdisciplinary Exhibitions

The Syracuse University Art Museum kicks off its fall season on Aug. 26 with four new exhibitions that reflect the museum’s mission to foster diverse and inclusive perspectives and unite students across disciplines with the local and global community. From…

How Artists Are Embracing Artificial Intelligence to Create Works of Art

Artists have always embraced new technologies to push the boundaries of their creations—balancing imagination and authenticity with innovation. Artificial intelligence (AI) is no different, says Rebecca Xu, professor of computer art and animation in the Department of Film and Media…

Art Museum Faculty Fellows Leverage Collections to Enhance Teaching

Four faculty members have been named Syracuse University Art Museum Faculty Fellows for the 2025-26 academic year. The fellows program, now in its fourth year, supports innovative curriculum development and the fuller integration of the museum’s collection in University instruction….

Syracuse Stage Announces Cast and Production Team of Musical ‘The Hello Girls’

Syracuse Stage announced an exciting new cast and creative team for “The Hello Girls,” with music and lyrics by Peter Mills and book by Peter Mills and Cara Reichel. Featuring fresh orchestrations, new staging and reworked material, this new production…

Subscribe to SU Today

If you need help with your subscription, contact sunews@syr.edu.

Connect With Us

  • X
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
Social Media Directory

For the Media

Find an Expert Follow @SyracuseUNews
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
  • @SyracuseU
  • @SyracuseUNews
  • Social Media Directory
  • Accessibility
  • Privacy
  • Campus Status
  • Syracuse.edu
© 2025 Syracuse University News. All Rights Reserved.