ESL Student Writers Featured in New Book
Nine students in Christina Mitchell’s English as a Second Language (ESL) intermediate classes at Portland High School will have their writing featured in a new anthology titled “I Carry It Everywhere.” Photos and quotes from two additional students also appear in the book.
The Telling Room in Portland will publish “I Carry It Everywhere” in June. The student writers will be honored at a book release party on June 12 at 7 p.m. at Space Gallery, 538 Congress St., Portland. Some of the students will read their stories at the event.
Volunteer writers from the Telling Room worked all year with Mitchell’s students on the project. Only 18 of the 400 pieces submitted by area high school students will be included in the anthology, and half of those come from the Portland High ESL classes.
Portland High senior Zaki Hassan won first place in the Telling Room’s writing contest. Other students whose writing appears include Mohamed Omar, Mohamed Ali, Ilhan Hilowle, Halima Abdille, Zemarai Hassanzada, Samakab Jama, Nestor Gaitan and Hala Ishag. Two other Portland High students, Mahamed Mohamed and Jamilshah Sayed, have their photos and statements featured in the book.
Some of the students’ writing may be found at www.tellingroom.org. The Portland High students’ work also will be shown at the Bayside World Market and Fair at Portland High on June 21.
