Southern Word, Inc.

http://www.southernword.org

 

Mission

Through the literary and performing arts, Southern Word offers creative solutions for youth to build literacy and presentation skills, reconnect to their education and lives, and act as leaders in the improvement of their communities. We are committed to providing youth, especially in underserved communities, with as many opportunities as possible to develop and publicly present their voices both live and in print, video, audio, and digital media. Southern Word primarily focuses on spoken word, also known as performance poetry, which has proven effective as a youth development and literacy tool.

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Grants

Grant Year Amount Program Name Program Area Description
2018 $20,000 Core Mission Support education Learn more

To support programming and general operations.
2017 $20,000 Core Mission Support education Learn more

To support programming and general operations.
2015 $20,000 Mentoring and Modeling Literacy in Middle Tennessee education Learn more

Southern Word has been successful building literacy skills and literate identities in low-income communities through the use of writer mentors. There is a continued need to include developing writers who are between the ages of 16 and 24 as part of our teaching teams. This grant will fund their inclusion.

100 Taylor Street, A-20
Nashville, TN 37208
(615) 385-1006

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About Maddox

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©2025 Maddox Fund. All Rights Reserved.

Jen Bailey is the Executive Director of the Dan and Margaret Maddox Fund, bringing her deep experience in community-based leadership, philanthropy, and movement-building to the organization.

Jen is the Founder of Faith Matters Network, a national Womanist-led organization accompanying spiritually-grounded leaders on their journey to heal themselves and their communities. Since its inception, Faith Matters Network has served over 25,000 leaders through its programs and initiatives. She is Co-Founder of The People’s Supper, a global initiative that has hosted over 2,000 gatherings in 135 communities to foster conversation and collective healing across lines of difference.

Committed to advancing social change through philanthropy and nonprofit leadership, Jen serves on the boards of the Jessie Ball duPont Fund, the Fetzer Institute, and The Healing Trust, where she is the Board Chair.

An Ashoka Fellow, New Pluralist Field Builder, Aspen Ideas Scholar, On Being Fellow, and Truman Scholar, Jen holds degrees from Tufts University and Vanderbilt University Divinity School, where she was awarded the Wilbur F. Tillett Prize for accomplishments in the study of theology. Her work has been featured by On Being with Krista Tippett, CBS This Morning, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and more. She is also the author of To My Beloveds: Letters on Faith, Race, Loss, and Radical Hope (Chalice Press, 2021).

email Jen: [email protected]