Defining the Poet-Athlete in 2023

America SCORES program offerings are often described as “unique”, centering soccer alongside spoken word to share in the development of our young people into community leaders. These young people, who spend up to 7 hours a week in ASNY programming, are often described as poet-athletes.

While the idea of a poet-athlete is simple enough -- a young person who participates in poetry and athletic programming -- ASNY’s definition is far more extensive.

We sat down with Program Coordinator Natalia Meneses and Director of Writing Programs Chris Lantigua, who were once poet-athletes themselves, to explore what really defines a poet-athlete.

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VC: Can you tell me your name, your job title, and when you were a poet-athlete?

NM: My name is Natalia Meneses and I am a Program Coordinator for two of our schools in Harlem and now Washington Heights. I was a poet athlete from 2014-2015.
CL: And I’m Chris Lantigua, the Director of Writing Programs. I was a poet-athlete from 2001-2004, so I was one of the first ASNY poet-athletes!

VC: Both of you have experienced ASNY at such different times! What stands out most from your time as a poet-athlete?

NM: I remember it as the first time I felt excited about sports. I think I always felt so much pressure to play like a professional athlete, but what stands out is having fun with my teammates! There was a degree of competitiveness but nothing nearly as suffocating as playing for a club team, which alleviated so much of the pressure.
CL: What stands out most from my time as a poet-athlete was the impact it had on me as a student. I was about to enjoy school before because I built positive relationships with students and my coaches, who also happened to be my teachers. I noticed how they really cared and prioritized our needs. When I became a team leader, it built my confidence and showed me the value of commitment. All that I learned helped me become a better person and professional.

VC: It seems like a lot of the best memories involve your relationships with teammates, coaches, teachers. Did you take what you learned from them into your current role with ASNY?

NM: Definitely! Since I felt that my coach was meeting me where I was at in terms of my skill level, I felt heard and valued. This also took a lot of pressure off of feeling like I needed to be the absolute best because she constantly reminded me we were a team. Because of her, I strive to meet all my students where they are, whether it be in soccer or poetry, and acknowledging all students’ skills no matter what they are helps to build a team. My coach taught me that everyone has something to offer, and I strive to bring that to work with me everyday.
CL: I agree with Natalie for sure. As the Director of Writing Programs, one of my goals is to provide the best experience possible for our poet-athletes and coach mentors at major events like our Poetry Slam, Jamboree, and our game days. Because I know from experience how meaningful and exciting those days are, I always want to make sure that those events are as special for those poet-athletes as they were for me as a kid.

VC: I love that, you both definitely have taken the sentiment of “paying it forward” really seriously. How does it feel to coach current poet-athletes who are currently experiencing all those moments that stood out for you?

CL: As a coach, my priorities are respect, honesty, and fairness. When I was a poet-athlete, Coach Hart from PS 153 showed me that he cared by always showing up to practice and being prepared but always checking-in if we missed a session. It made me realize how much our whole team cared about each other and it reminded me how important it was to show up. So, as a coach, I always try to be present in the moment, show respect and be on top of my poet-athletes when they show signs of concern and/or have multiple absences to let them know that I notice and care. 
NM: Same here Chris, those moments really stood out. For me, I feel privileged to be able to coach young people because I understood what it was like to feel excluded or lonely, so I feel very lucky to do my part to work against that and include everyone at all times. Coaching and mentorship has always felt like the career for me: I had never felt like I belonged in any one job until I began to coach. It really  has helped me find my path, and each and every one of my students has helped me find my path though they may not know it.

VC: The care you both bring to your poet-athletes is so incredible and they definitely know how invested you both are into their success. I know it’s been about a decade or two since you’ve been poet-athletes yourselves. How has the "poet-athlete", in your opinion, changed and evolved since you were one?

NM: I feel that poet athlete used to mean just that, someone who likes poetry and sports. But because ASNY intentionally and consistently uses “poet-athletes”, we’ve solidified that being a poet-athlete means being a part of a team and a part of America SCORES.
CL: The "poet-athlete" has evolved tremendously since I was once a part of it! Now, we have both Elementary and Middle schools poet-athletes and we even have older youth programming through Kicking It Forward, Saturday Night Lights, and Coaching for Change Academy. We make sure that our core values of teamwork, leadership, commitment, community & fairplay carry from childhood through adulthood.

VC: How do you hope the "poet-athlete" continues to evolve?

CL: I hope that those transitions from Elementary School Programming to Middle School Programming and Alumni Programming continue to be seamless. We want to keep showcasing what programs we have for students throughout their development so that they can look to join and continue progressing and being involved and obtaining opportunities as they come to us. As we look to the future, I would like to monitor the colleges that our older poet-athletes are getting accepted to and showcasing their success and maintaining relationships with them!
NM: I hope that the term poet-athlete becomes more normalized outside of the program. I tell outsiders that I am the coordinator of a program pushing to create poet-athletes, and people don’t really understand what that means. Athleticism in and of itself has poetry and artistry embedded into it, though it may not be so obvious. Being a poet-athlete means you are as dedicated to your team as you are to yourself.

VC: Now that you’ve had time to reflect on what being a poet-athlete means to you, how it’s changed over the years, and your hopes for it, I wonder: how do you define "poet-athlete"?

NM: I believe that poet-athletes are integral to their community and also work to better themselves to create more opportunities. The ideal poet-athlete encourages their whole team to contribute, all the time! There is no exclusivity to the poet-athlete, as they value both writing and sports because one is not better or cooler than the other, you need both. Poet-athletes see the value of poetry, soccer, teamwork and leadership, not only in their personal lives but also in the world.
CL: I define poet-athlete as someone who represents our core values of teamwork, leadership, commitment, community and fairplay. What sets them apart from their peers is the fact that they are someone who uses poetry, soccer and civic engagement as tools to express who they are and the change that they want to see in their community and around the world.