BOSTON’S “RENAISSANCE MAN” HAYWOOD FENNELL: COMPASSION AND COMMUNITY, LEARNING AND LITERACY

Haywood Fennell, Sr. continues to add dimensions to his writings. Born in New York City, the now Boston resident recently self-published the first book from The Coota Experiences Trilogy, Coota and the Magic Quilt, ISBN No. 0-9720404-0-4.” This book positively impacts readers. In part it is about the importance of not using racial slurs when communicating with each other and learn the importance of our history. With a readability level for middle school, adults who read the book also relate to its themes. Coota and the Magic Quilt tells a story of a young boy named Jerome, but nicknamed Coota (which translates to “peanut”.) Jerome lives in Boston and wants to become a Gangsta Rap star. His concerned mother takes him on a summer trip to visit his grandmother Miss Mattie; a retired schoolteacher who does not own a television, doesn’t know anything about Rap, and insists that he read.

It is during this visit that Coota has two major encounters that help him to understand his history and the importance of compassionate communications. There is a Teacher’s Guide written by an educator that helps with classroom use. Now, Haywood is working with a few after school programs/educators to implement a curriculum for literacy enrichment. He is also working on the second installment of the trilogy.

The Coota Literacy Enrichment Program sparks critical thinking about the importance of sensitive and appropriate communications, increases interest in literacy, adds value to literacy, and bridges the gaps of literacy that occur among disadvantaged youth in elementary and middle schools.

A beloved figure in Boston, Haywood is often called a Renaissance Man because of his prolific writings which draw upon our history for his source material. He is an ex-offender who has refused to allow his past mistakes to hold him “hostage.” He is well known throughout the City of Boston as an advocate for prison reform. A great deal of his work centers around transitional services. He serves on the Board of Directors of the Stanley Jones Clean Slate Project, an ex-offender think tank working to educate and to empower those marginalized by the CORI Law. Haywood’s advocates for professional social/mental health services as soon as the person enters the prison system. He helps by visiting jails and prisons and talking about the importance of opening up to change the mindset from wanting to be a smooth criminal to become with skills development a taxpayers a opposed to tax-burden.

Also, a Vietnam Era veteran, who served nearly six years in the US Army as a clerk, photographer, and information specialist, Haywood founded The Tri-Ad Veterans’ League – a veterans’ rights advocacy organization where the members incorporate their military skills with program development for educational/cultural programs, particularly around incarceration and HIV/AIDS. The League recently partnered again with The Boston Local Vulcans Society of African-American Firefighters to produce the fourth annual (televised) 9/11 Memorial Service. Presently, the veterans’ organization he founded works with Northeastern University to improve health care services. Their current project focuses on health disparities for African-American veterans that seek health care from the Veterans Administration Medical Centers.

He is also the co-host of a popular weekly cable television program called Speaking About, which hosts a weekly guest list of known and unknown community champions who have updates to share and ideas to discuss.

This soft-spoken author/playwright has written, produced and staged seven annual performances of the cultural education play, The Harlem Renaissance Revisited With a Boston Flavor. Harlem teaches American history, with focus on the Harlem Renaissance Era of the 1920s. The play portrays some of the central artists of this culturally significant time period; who came together to face and overcome some of the racial barriers that denied them opportunities to pursue their art. The play involves a multi-generational volunteer cast, who sing and dance their way into hearts of the audiences. Haywood later wrote and produced From Gospel to Hip-Hop and All in Between, performed for two consecutive years to date. A musical lineage production, this show was last performed in February 2005 on the world known stage of The Berklee Performance Center, who gave Haywood a community service performance grant from the Office of the President’s Office of Community and Government Affairs. This show praises the history of the evolvement of African-American music. Evolvement, and the great contributions this music gives to us all. He recently completed another book, This Man, Thoughts About Our Times, an anthology of his of poetry and prose.

Haywood attended public school in Wilmington, N.C. He attended Boston University where he studied Urban Planning and U/Mass Boston’s College of Community and Public Service studying Urban Issues. He is the Boston Editor for Unity First, a Springfield, MA-based diversity community newspaper. Haywood received the 2003 prestigious Boston Neighborhood Fellow’s Award. He serves on the Advisory Board of the William Monroe Trotter Institute at U/Mass Boston. He is a lecturer on the Harlem Renaissance Era and its’ importance to American history and served as a member of the Judging Committee for Reflection in Action; Building Healthy Communities, sponsored by The Harvard Medical School Office for Diversity and Community Partnership and as a Presenter for the Community Enrichment Fellows 2004 and as a member of Roxbury Community College Community Advisory Group.

He was named a Boston Herald Literacy Hero 2005. He will be honored on November 4th, 2005 as one of the 100 Distinguished Black Men sponsored by The Prince Hall Masons of Boston, MA. When speaking to youth, and especially on prison visits, Haywood talks about his going from stealing books to writing books and how is life was changed by other people praying for him, when he would not pray for himself. He also enjoys freelance photography.