Spoken Futures, Inc.

Spoken Futures, Inc. is a youth-centered arts and community engagement organization based in Tucson and serving the greater Southern Arizona region. Codirectors Sarah Gonzales and Logan Phillips work with an all-youth staff on three core programs, the Tucson Youth Poetry Slam, Liberation Lyrics and Kaleidoscope, as well as the La Pilita Cultural Center in Barrio Viejo.

Since 2010 the Tucson Youth Poetry Slam (TYPS) has provided an open and welcoming forum for writers aged nine to nineteen to express their “words and dreams, applause and screams.” The monthly, audience-judged performance poetry competitions are organized and hosted by youth, with support from adult artist allies. During the 2012-2013 season, over 60 poets from 17 different schools across the region rocked the mic. In addition, TYPS holds frequent “spark performances,” sending teaching artists into schools for assemblies and workshops, reaching thousands of students yearly.