It was the night the students of the English department became one. They dressed up in their Halloween costumes, brought their favorite poems and looked forward to an evening with their peers, as well as free pizza.

The Scream Slam was created by Shippensburg University senior Lexi Mills to encourage fellow English majors and groups to come together and share their love of poetry. After Mills changed her major from education to English, she realized she did not know anyone in the department and thought the event would be a great way to reunite all English major disciplines for a night of fun. The Scream Slam was sponsored by the English department along with its organizations and groups which include, the English Honor Society Sigma Tau Delta, The Reflector and Writers United Poetry Club.

Students began to show up at 8 p.m. to McFeely’s Coffeehouse. Some students were there to listen and support their fellow English majors, while others were decked out in their costumes, ready to share their poems. The costumes were eccentric to say the least, ranging from a sparkle fairy to a dragon witch.

Then, there were the costume classics: Heather Ritter, co-editor of The Reflector, stitched herself together as Sally from “The Nightmare Before Christmas.” Duo Casey Leming, co-poetry editor of The Reflector, and Megan Smith dressed as the Mad Hatter and Cheshire Cat from “Alice in Wonderland.” However, Natasha Stark, a member of Writers United Poetry Club, won with her originality by wearing workout clothes and a sign that read “sentence,” making her a run-on sentence.

A table was set up by the stage where votes were taken for best costume. To raise sponsorship for the English Honor Society Sigma Tau Delta, students were encouraged to put their loose change to good useby voting, which resulted in a total of $10 by the end of the evening.

Showing support for another program on campus, Mills set up a book drive where students wishing to read their poems donated one book. The books will be donated to SU club Reach Out, which is selling books next week to purchase school supplies for children in the Dominican Republic.

Sporting bunny ears, senior Maria Diehl, a member of Sigma Tau Delta, kicked the evening off with “How to Sleep on Halloween Night,” reminding the crowd to sleep with crosses and garlic to ward off witches and vampires that might visit during the night. Many students shared their favorite spooky poems while some students felt comfortable sharing their own work. Freshman Trevor Hall, who read his poem, “Ode to the Streetlamp,” said he had no stage fright because the people there made him feel comfortable and that he would definitely do it again. Prose editor of The Reflector Kyle Gearity treated everyone to the classic macabre tale, “The Tell-Tale Heart.” Making a special appearance, Professor Jordan Windholz of the English department continued the Halloween theme, reading “All Hallows,” later saying that poetry is not just about love or romance, but can be frightening.

By the end of the evening, the votes were counted. The winner of best Halloween costume went to Ritter, who was awarded a $20 Amazon gift card.

As some students began to leave, Mills asked everyone to fill out a survey to give feedback on what they liked about the Scream Slam, what they would change and what future English department events they wished to have in the future. The vote was unanimous: everyone wanted another poetry slam night.

“It’s a great way for new voices on campus to be heard,” said Amber J. Pound, editor-in-chief of The Reflector, who urged many of the students that read their original work to submit them to The Reflector for publication.

Diehl hoped more people would come to future poetry slams and read from authors they like or their own.

“We are one big happy family,” Pound said. 

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