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WHEREAS, Terrance Hayes was born in Columbia, South Carolina in 1971, and educated at Coker College where he studied painting and English, and was an Academic All-American on the men's basketball team; and,
WHEREAS, after receiving a Masters degree from the University of Pittsburgh in 1997, he taught in: southern Japan; Columbus, Ohio; and New Orleans, Louisiana; and,
WHEREAS, Mr. Hayes returned to Pittsburgh, in 2001 to teach at Carnegie Mellon University, where he became one of the university's youngest full professors in 2006; and,
WHEREAS, Mr. Hayes' honors include a Guggenheim Fellowship, a profile on the PBS Newshour with Jim Lehrer, and a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship; and,
WHEREAS, Mr. Hayes has read his poetry throughout the country in venues that include the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, the August Wilson Center for African American Culture, Princeton University, Yale University, UCLA, The Boys Club of New York, and the Geraldine R. Dodge Poetry Festival; and,
WHEREAS, he was also recently honored as a recipient of The New Pittsburgh Courier's 50 Men of Excellence Award for 2010; and,
WHEREAS, in November, Terrance Hayes became one of the youngest poets to ever win the National Book Award, Poetry Category, for his collection Lighthead.
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NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the Council of the City of Pittsburgh hereby recognizes Terrance Hayes as one of America's most dynamic and accomplished poets and for his receipt of the 2010 National Book Award, Poetry Category; and,
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Council of the City of Pittsburgh does hereby declare Tuesday, November 30, 2010, Terrance Hayes Day in the City of Pittsburgh.