“Before the poem lived upon the silent page,
it beat inside the talking drum and breathed upon the stage —
from Blue Mountain mist to South Florida halls, the youth reclaim their voice.”
Founded by acclaimed Jamaican dub poet Malachi Smith alongside a legendary council of West Indian authors, storytellers, and dramatists, Jamaica Poets Nomadic College & School Tour Inc travels directly into high schools, community colleges, and universities across Florida and Jamaica. Through live acoustic performance assemblies, dub rhythm workshops, and ancestral Anansi storytelling, we mentor students in spoken-word literacy, cultural identity, and oral empowerment.
Spoken Word & Nyabinghi Rhythm
FIELD DISPATCH • SOUTH FLORIDA & JAMAICA CARAVAN
40+
Campuses Engaged
High schools, colleges & community centers
3,500+
Student Voices Mentored
Youth writing & oral performance literacy
Masterclasses
Dub Poetry Workshops
Cadence, meter, patois & stage breath
UWI Mona
& South Florida Sessions
Miami-Dade, Broward & Jamaican parishes
For generations across the Caribbean, poetry has never been a static artifact locked inside dusty library shelves. It is an electrical, communal heartbeat—spoken aloud in schoolyards, chanted to the pulse of Nyabinghi wood-skin drums, and woven through the proverbs of elders. Out of this vibrant heritage, acclaimed Jamaican dub poet and author Malachi Smith convened a distinguished fellowship of Caribbean literary icons to form JAMAICA POETS NOMADIC COLLEGE & SCHOOL TOUR INC.
Headquartered at 820 NW 186th Drive in Miami Gardens, Florida, our collective operates as a true nomadic caravan of working poets, filmmakers, university scholars, and traditional storytellers. Rather than waiting for students to discover Caribbean literature in textbooks, we bring the living poets directly into high school auditoriums, English language arts classrooms, community colleges, and university lecture halls across South Florida and the island of Jamaica.
Joined by co-founders and directors Judith Falloon-Reid, Dr. Opal Palmer Adisa, Dr. Amina Blackwood Meeks, and Tomlin Ellis, our tours bridge the diaspora—connecting diaspora youth in Miami-Dade and Broward counties with the foundational oral artistry of Kingston, St. Catherine, and the University of the West Indies (UWI) Mona.
[Cadence: One-Drop Heartbeat • 76 BPM]
“Speak it in the language of your grandmother’s porch,
let the consonant strike like flint on iron,
every student notebook is a drumhead waiting,
for the truth only your own voice can carry.”
“Jamaica Poets Nomadic College & School Tour Inc is a Miami Gardens, Florida 501(c)(3) nonprofit cultural arts organization dedicated to inspiring youth through the transformative power of Jamaican dub poetry, spoken word, and oral heritage. By traveling directly into schools, colleges, and community centers across Florida and the Caribbean, we conduct dynamic workshops and performances. We nurture creative literacy, celebrate African-Caribbean identity, and empower students to find and speak their own authentic truth.”
Rooted in the rhythms of Jamaican oral tradition and scholarly pedagogy, five foundational pillars guide every school visit, university symposium, and student workshop we conduct.
We teach students that the human voice is the primary instrument of liberation. When young people articulate their lived experiences aloud with clarity and conviction, shyness transforms into civic and artistic agency.
Celebrating both standard English and the rich musicality of Jamaican Nation Language (Patois), we reveal how dub poetry fuses reggae bass-and-drum syncopation with incisive social commentary and lyrical meter.
By connecting poetic metaphor, imagery, and revision directly to rhythmic performance, our workshops awaken reluctant readers and writers, boosting classroom literacy, vocabulary mastery, and critical comprehension.
Students learn directly from published Caribbean poet laureates, veteran dramatists, and master storytellers—ensuring that ancestral wisdom, artistic discipline, and oral archives pass seamlessly to the next generation.
We preserve and elevate indigenous West Indian folklore, African-Caribbean historical memory, and diaspora pride so young scholars recognize their heritage as a deep wellspring of global literature.
Designed in partnership with high school language arts departments, college humanities faculties, and community cultural centers across Florida and Jamaica.
Our signature traveling ensemble brings multi-generational Jamaican poets directly onto high school and college campuses in South Florida and across Jamaican parishes. Through electrifying auditorium assemblies, call-and-response recitals, and moderated Q&A forums, students experience poetry as a living communal event.
Led by Founder Malachi Smith and veteran dub dramatist Tomlin Ellis, these hands-on writing and vocal intensive sessions train student writers in rhythmic scansion, diaphragmatic breath control, acoustic cadence, and dramatic projection—turning raw journal entries into powerful spoken-word compositions.
Guided by master traditional storyteller Dr. Amina Blackwood Meeks and Caribbean literary scholar Dr. Opal Palmer Adisa, this pillar preserves indigenous West Indian oral folklore. Students explore the West African Ashanti roots of Anansi the Spider, Jamaican riddles, ring games, and proverbs as foundational vessels of moral philosophy and wit.
Every workshop culminates in student presentation and permanent literary recognition. Working alongside filmmaker and author Judith Falloon-Reid, we host supportive campus poetry slams, compile student chapbooks and broadsheet anthologies, and document emerging youth voices across South Florida and Jamaica.
Experience the authentic cadence, dramatic timing, and lyrical power of Founder & President Malachi Smith—fellow of the Jamaica Poetry Archive and pioneer of the Jamaica Poets Nomadic College & School Tour. Select an archival recording below to witness how Jamaican oral literature comes alive.
Select Archival Performance Reel:
Jamaican Dub Poetry Archival Reel
Featuring Founder & President Malachi Smith performing spoken word and dub poetry for students and cultural audiences.
Featured Documentary & Spoken-Word Profile examining Malachi Smith’s lifelong dedication to Jamaican dub poetry and youth mentorship.
Open on YouTubeOur Board of Directors and corporate officers unite Jamaica’s foremost dub poets, university scholars, filmmakers, and traditional storytellers.
Acclaimed Jamaican Dub Poet, Author & Fellow of the Jamaica Poetry Archive
Born in St. Catherine, Jamaica, and graduate of the Jamaica School of Drama, Malachi Smith is an internationally celebrated dub poet, recording artist, and educator. A multi-gold medalist in speech and poetry at the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC) Festival, he founded the Nomadic College & School Tour to bring living Caribbean poetry directly to students across Florida and Jamaica.
Filmmaker, Poet, Author & Cultural Advocate
An accomplished Jamaican poet, novelist, screenwriter, and award-winning independent filmmaker, Judith Falloon-Reid co-founded the nomadic collective to unite visual storytelling with spoken-word pedagogy. She leads youth anthology curation, documentary archiving of school tours, and creative writing workshops for emerging student authors.
Celebrated Caribbean Author, Poet & Former Director of IGDS at UWI Mona
An internationally renowned Jamaican poet, literary critic, and gender studies scholar, Dr. Opal Palmer Adisa formerly served as Director of the Institute for Gender and Development Studies (IGDS) at the University of the West Indies, Mona. Author of numerous poetry collections and novels, she anchors the tour’s collegiate curriculum and literary scholarship.
Master Traditional Storyteller & Cultural Educator
Widely revered across the Caribbean as the custodian of traditional West Indian storytelling and founder of Ntukuma (The Storytelling Foundation of Jamaica), Dr. Amina Blackwood Meeks brings ancestral Anansi folklore, indigenous proverbs, and African-Caribbean oral memory into classrooms with unmatched warmth and scholarly depth.
Veteran Dub Poet & Theatrical Dramatist
A pioneering voice in the Jamaican dub poetry movement and seasoned theatrical practitioner, Tomlin Ellis combines percussive spoken-word artistry with dramatic stagecraft. In school assemblies and campus workshops, he mentors youth in physical expression, rhythmic delivery, and fearless performance energy.
Registered Agent & Statutory Representative
Serving as the official Florida Registered Agent for JAMAICA POETS NOMADIC COLLEGE & SCHOOL TOUR INC, Michael Taylor oversees statutory filings, Florida Division of Corporations (Sunbiz) compliance (`#N23000001056`), and administrative governance in support of the organization’s educational mission.
School districts, university procurement offices, philanthropic foundations, and individual patrons can verify our federal and state public charity credentials below.
VERIFIED STATE OF FLORIDA & IRS PUBLIC CHARITY RECORD
Every tax-deductible contribution and institutional booking directly underwrites free and subsidized dub poetry workshops, student poetry anthologies, and live assemblies for public high schools and colleges in Florida and Jamaica.