““Listen to the stories of kids in this struggling school and you realize how very little numbers like test scores and turnaround statistics capture. These students carry around stuff so heavy it’s a wonder they make it to school at all, let alone talk about it.
And yet... “”

““...the organization’s credo is simple but powerful:
“We believe everyone has a story to tell, and that the greater community will be more honest and compassionate through the listening to and sharing of stories.””

“Kaleel Campbell said the toughest thing about getting up in front of an audience and talking about his middle school crush was dealing with the nerves. “I had to get myself out of the way - the negative voice inside me saying, ‘Sit back down, bro,” he said. “That was the very first time I got onstage and told a story in front of people, but I wanted to tell the story. I wanted to get it off my chest.”

”

““ Many of the stories people bring to the slams prove the algorithm, ‘Time plus tragedy equals comedy,’” Dooley said. “The stories are dramatic, hilarious, serious, and even cathartic but unlike their ‘cousins’ - stand-up comedy - or a poetry slam, a story slam is a competition to see who can bring the best story related to the published theme.””