| 2002 Color of Violence Conference
University of Illinois-Chicago |
| 2001 Ladyfest Midwest |
| 2000 Conference on Girls & Gangs
Northwestern University School of Law |
| 1999 Black Women's Expo
McCormick Place |
| 1997 African Festival of the Arts
DuSable Museum
|
| Appearances on WGCI 107.5 FM |
| Co-host "City Voices" on WNUA 95.5 FM
|
| 2002 National Poetry Festival Slam Champ
Chicago State University |
| 2000 Illinois Arts Council Literary Award |
| 2000 Rust Belt Regional Slam champion |
| Mad Bar Slam Champ (1999, 2000 team semi-finals)
Wicker Park, Chicago |
| 1999 Gwendolyn Brooks Open Mic Award |
| Co-host/emcee: Women OutLoud (Chicago's longest-running all-women open mic) |
| 2002 winner of 2nd Annual Poetry Festival
Chicago State University Slam |
| Tribute to Gwendolyn Brooks
University of Illinois-Chicago w/ Obsidian III, 2001 |
| Ignition Theater Festival
Northwestern University |
| Girls & Violence Conference
Northwestern School of Law |
| The Rights of the Child event
UIC Center for Youth & Society |
|
| San Francisco State University |
| University of Illinois @ Urbana/Champaign |
| Wright College (Chicago, IL) |
| Loyola University (Chicago, IL) |
| Chicago State University |
| University of Chicago |
| Purdue University (Indiana) |
| University of Michigan at Dearborn |
| University of Wisconsin at Stevens Point |
| University of Illinois at Chicago |
| Northwestern University |
| Northwestern School of Law |
| Columbia College (Chicago, IL) |
| Roosevelt University |
| Malcolm X College |
Tara Betts describes her writing as a blend of performance, formalism, autobiography and lyricism. She has been gathering strength as a versatile poet by writing, performing and publishing her work on the performance poetry scene and in the literary world. She has performed in New York, Cuba and throughout the Midwest. Her work has been adapted at the nationally-renowned Steppenwolf Theater for the production "Words on Fire." Her short story from That Takes Ovaries! was also adapted by Washington, DC-based Horizons Theatre Company. She is also a fellow at Cave Canem, an African-American poets' workshop/retreat.
She has taught writing workshops at high schools, colleges and elementary schools and Cook County Jail. She has been a writer-in-residence at Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center through National Louis University for the past two years. She also taught many of the students who won the 2002 & 2003 Brave New Voices National Youth Poetry Slam competitions.
Tara Betts is available for appearances at universities, colleges, private events, music and poetry shows and writing workshops, especially with women and youth.