Tuesday, January 31st, Preuss held a Poetry Assembly in the Walton Center for sophomores who will present their annotated poems to special guest Ernie McCray.

Ms. Noorzay stated, “I had to decide who I wanted to share Ernie McCray with and after some thought, I decided on the sophomores. After filling out some forms as well as making sure Ernie McCray’s schedule was open, we were able to get the Poetry Assembly all set up and ready to go.”  

McCray’s poetry focuses on the issues of African Americans, which are addressed within the sophomores’ AP African American Studies course. 

“A week before the Poetry Assembly, I had my AP African American Studies students analyze, annotate, and understand some of the poetry of Ernie McCray to be ready and present what they annotated for when the assembly happens,” explained Ms. Marsha Greco.

The Poetry Assembly provided the opportunity for students to ask McCray questions about his poetry and the life he had that contributed to his poems’ messages. 

“During the poetry assembly Mr. McCray will not only share his work with the sophomores, but also have a discussion with them about their understanding of the African American past and present day,” explained Ms. Greco.

There was also much to learn about McCray himself as he was a key player to his high school and university basketball teams as well as making renowned poems in Ocean Beach.

“Ernie McCray was a former college basketball player as well as a former principal, giving him a familiar title in his community,” said Ms. Noorzay. “As of now, he has retired and now spends his time writing poetry that gets featured in a newspaper in Ocean Beach.”