Local student takes home the gold at national NAACP
Meet Jasmin Livingston, a 17-year-old Florence resident who’s about to enter her senior year at Northern Burlington.
She’s not entirely sure what she wants to be as an adult. Actor? Probaby. Journalist? Yeah, that too. Singer? Why not.
And as of right now, she’s a nationally recognized poet, having taken home the gold medal in poetry at the National ACT-SO competition which was recently completed in Detroit.
Titled “And That’s the T.E.A.,” it’s about how people specifically people Livingston’s age - do a whole lot of jibberjabbering and not a whole lot of thinking before they open their mouth. The “T.E.A.” in the title refers to the “truth, except actually” and the poem covers a lot of ground.
“It’s basically about gossip, the way kids in my generation - and really, so many adults - how we talk to each other a lot but we’re not talking about anything important” she said. “We should be having important conversations. About Flint, about gun violence, about drugs … and these aren’t just black issues. They’re human issues. Here’s an excerpt ...
Once we walked in rhythm and marched in legacy
But lately it seems we’re too busy sliding through our timelines fueling our jealousy
And apparently that’s the Devil’s favorite recipe
The organization which bestowed the gold on Livingston - ACT-SO - stands for Afro-Academic, Cultural, Technological, and Scientific Olympics, and is part of the NAACP. Each year, high school students across the nation compete in 32 categories - from poetry to physics, computer science to chemistry, music to math, and everything in-between - and the winners of the local and state contests head off to nationals. Livingston beat out hundreds of students across America to take home her gold - along with $2,000 and a new iPad and laptop.
And also a few friendships that will undoubtedly continue as Livingston heads off to college next year, be it at NYU or Hampton or wherever Livingston’s talents take her. But as for her ACT-SO experience, as part of the Trenton ACT-SO?
“This is one of the best programs I’ve ever had a chance to be a part of,” she said. “This was my first year, and I only wish I knew about it earlier. I was lucky to stumble into this program, but there’s so many kids in Trenton and all over the area that could benefit from joining. It’s so much more than a club.”
And in fact, there’s only about 25 kids currently part of Trenton ACT-SO, a group that was recently re-activated by Les Summiel, the chairperson of the chapter.
“Trenton had an ACT-SO program many years ago, but when I moved back to Trenton, there wasn’t an active program, so I helped to start one in 2012,” Summiel said. “It’s an awesome program for high school kids, and we recently started a feeder program for middle school students.”
Summiel, whose day job is with Mercer County One Stop, said the Trenton ACT-SO encourages kids from Mercer, Bucks, and Burlington to join and become part of this great organization - although if they do, then Summiel is going to need a little help from the community.
“Always good to grow slow,” Summiel said with a chuckle. “We’re growing in a healthy and organic way, and when Trenton High opens up, we’re definitely expecting a big increase.”
So.
Are you a high school student interested in joining the Trenton ACT-SO? Or maybe you’re an adult who can help grow the program? The way to do it is to touch base with Summiel at TrentonACTSO@gmail.com.
In the meantime, let’s once again congratulate Livingston on her gold …
“I didn’t expect to win,” she said. “I didn’t even think people were going to like it when I first entered it. It’s really, really encouraging to have won.”