The Poetry Cohort uses collaborative learning and story-sharing to help PAX Fellows sharpen their storytelling craft and deepen their understanding of poetry, words, and self.
POETRY
The PAX Fellowship
In-Person Retreat
The Fellowship includes an in-person retreat August 28-30 in Scottsdale, AZ. Canadian Fellows: August 29 in GTA.
15 Virtual Sessions
Contemplation, instruction, and connection for two hours twice monthly at 4PM PST; September 2026 to April 2027.
2 Spiritual Direction Sessions
Attend one-on-one contemplative sessions for mental health and spiritual life from a spiritual director of Color.
PAX Showcase
Contribute within your cohort to the culminating showcase for the PAX community in April 2027.
Monthly Keynotes
Learn from leading voices on contemplative activism and cultural identity.
Group Facilitation
Learn from expert facilitators in your area of focus to further your craft and call.
This poetry cohort uses collaborative learning and story-sharing to help PAX Fellows sharpen their storytelling craft and deepen their understanding of poetry, words, and self.
It is open to anyone interested in exploring language, creativity, and the poetic tools that shape meaningful narratives.
Learning goals include creating new work, deepen understanding of poetry and self, strengthening ability to evaluate and analyze art, expanding creative pathways, and developing accessible, memorable storytelling practices.
Deep diving into the nuance of words, storytelling, and the poetry that binds it all together through the sharing of each other’s stories and sharpening storytelling ability through the art of poetry.
Sessions run biweekly from September to May, covering topics such as voice, creative blocks, collaboration, experimentation, play, creative routines, and revision, with a spring showcase.
Fellows receive additional support through collaborative groups, online spaces, and are expected to engage, collaborate, and complete a culminating project.
Chenoa Daniels
Poetry Cohort Facilitator
Chenoa is the author of Whites Only and Blacks Only. After serving as an HIV/AIDS U.S. Peace Corps Volunteer in South Africa for two years, her passion for cultural diversity manifested in a life dedicated to the practice of poetry. As a performance poet and speaker, she is the only American Adjudicator for the African Teen Authors Book Initiative (ATABI), an international teen writing program. Her work has been featured in Voyage ATL Magazine, Fringe Benefits Theatre, The Bitter Southerner Magazine, Mbabane, eSwatini (Swaziland), various places in South Africa, and more. Chenoa is a staunch advocate of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) education and she manages a Vocational English as a Second Language (VESL) Program at the Interactive College of Technology. Together with her husband, she creates and curates various forms of art in Atlanta, Georgia.
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Early Admission is open February 16 to February 27, 2026. Early admission is only offered to those on our waitlist.
Open enrollment is open from March 2, 2026 to June 15, 2026, or when enrollment has reached capacity. There are a limited number of spots available in each cohort for a total of 100 fellows. -
PAX Fellowship In-Person Connection + Contemplative Retreat
Aug 28-30, 2026
Virtual sessions will take place on Tuesdays, 4pm-6pm PST / 7pm-9pm EST.Session 1: Sept 8, 2026
Session 2: Sept 22, 2026
Session 3: Oct 6, 2026
Session 4: Oct 20, 2026
Session 5: Nov 3, 2026
Session 6: Nov 17, 2026
Session 7: Jan 5, 2027
Session 8: Jan 19, 2027
Session 9: Feb 2, 2027
Session 10: Feb 16, 2027
Session 11: Mar 2, 2027
Session 12: Mar 16, 2027
Session 13: Mar 30, 2027 Keynote & Survey
Session 14: April 13, 2027 Showcase
Session 15: April 27, 2027 Goodbye Session
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The PAX Fellowship Connection + Contemplation Retreat kicks off the PAX Fellowship and is an integral part of the experience as a PAX Fellow.
Start Date: Friday, August 28 at 4:30pm
End Date: Sunday, August 30 at 1:00pm
Location: Franciscan Renewal Center
5802 E. Lincoln Drive, Scottsdale, AZ 85253
Just 20 minutes from Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.Canadian Date: Saturday, August 29
Time & Location: TBD in GTALodging, meals, and materials are included in the cost of tuition. Fellows are responsible for their own travel arrangements to the retreat.
Additional details will be included upon admittance to the PAX Fellowship. Should you have any questions about the Retreat and the impact it has on your cohort, please reach out to our Fellowship Director, Rachel, at fellowship@madeforpax.org.
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Tuition per fellow is $2,000. While this figure reflects the true cost of architecting the fellowship, we believe that the opportunity for mentorship and instruction belongs to all Christians of color and are committed to reducing financial barriers to participation. That’s why we’re offering tiered tuition with scholarships ranging from $1000 - $1300, affording you the agency to choose tuition that best aligns with your current financial circumstance.
These tuition tiers are made possible by the generosity of donors and foundations.
Alumni: $700 - two payments of $350 (scholarship amount of $1300)
Tier 1:$800 - two payments of $400 (scholarship amount of $1200)
If your financial picture is such that paying more would not be feasible, please select this tuition tier and know that we welcome you with open arms.
Tier 2: $900 - two payments of $450 (scholarship amount of $1100)
Suggested dues for the PAX Fellowship
Tier 3: $1000 - two payments of $500 (scholarship amount of $1000)
If your season allows you to comfortably pay this amount, you'll help offset the lower tier for those for whom tuition represents a greater barrier to access.
Tier 4: $800 - three payments at $200, $300, and $300 (scholarship amount of $1200)
If your financial picture is such that paying more would not be feasible and you’d like a three part-payment plan, please select this tuition tier and know that we welcome you with open arms.
The first tuition payment is due within 3 days of acceptance into the Fellowship and is non-refundable. A Stripe payment link will be included with your acceptance letter. For all additional payments, your payment method on file will be automatically charged 25 business days after the first payment has been submitted, and is non-refundable. For Tier 4, your third payment will be charged 25 days after your second payment and is non-refundable.
Beyond our tiered tuition, if finances prohibit your participation, then we encourage you to consider asking your family, church, mentor, or employer to support your continued education by sponsoring your enrollment in the fellowship. Link to a Sponsorship Letter Template will be included with your acceptance letter.Financial Aid
If tuition continues to be a barrier beyond the scholarship tiers and the sponsorship letter, you may answer the financial aid question in the application to be considered for additional aid toward Tier 1 or Tier 4 tuition. Financial aid requests are reviewed on a case-by-case basis and awarded as funds are available. You will be notified via email on the status of your financial aid request.
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Hospitality and Belonging
PAX draws from Franciscan spirituality rooted in radical hospitality for all God’s image bearers. We honor each person’s God-given uniqueness, background, story, and identity, believing they can encounter the Divine through the created world, others, and experiences. We strive to uplift voices from diverse perspectives through embodied faith expressed under the tent of belonging. We welcome, accept, and affirm every individual’s worth as a reflection of God’s love made plain in creation. Our Franciscan way embraces the primacy of Christ and the richness of Christian faith expressed through incarnational presence. In our effort to pursue justice, peace, and care for all creation, we reject supremacy that harms image bearers or God’s beloved world.
Wonder and Wisdom
We understand that with diversity comes disagreement and tension. Therefore we value thoughtful dialogue and embrace tension, as these are key components of contemplative Christianity. We challenge PAX Fellows to wonder with the topics presented in the PAX Fellowship, and encourage thoughtful prayer and reflection. Our aim is to support Fellows in a deeper relationship with the Divine and others. Fellows are expected to interact constructively with those holding different denominational and theological perspectives. We recognize the difference between healthy disagreement and harmful behavior, therefore we do not allow bullying, harassment, hatred, or violence.
Contemplation and Action
We are contemplative activists. Our practice holds silence and stillness as sacred tools for transformation; personally and collectively. We draw from Black and Brown Christian faith traditions that have long practiced deep reflection, communal prayer, and creative resistance first practiced by the Desert Mothers and Fathers of North Africa and later embodied by the Civil Rights Movement. Contemplation for us is not withdrawal from the world, but a way of grounding our action in love, justice, and presence. Rather than emptying our minds, we fill our mind and heart with the knowledge and presence of Christ in our contemplative practice.
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View syllabus for the Poetry Cohort here.
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The PAX Fellowship is for you if you…
identify as a Christian of color, are between the ages of 25-45, and practice a non-syncretic* expression of Christianity
can commit to attending the in-person PAX Fellowship Retreat in August 2026 in Scottsdale, AZ
are able to attend and engage in 15 sessions taking place September 2026 to April 2027
desire to be with Christians of different theological and denominational backgrounds with the shared values of justice, peace, and contemplation
maintain your sense of self in spaces with people of differing perspectives
engage in civil discourse and disagreement respectfully
wish to learn practical ways of Christian contemplation and apply these principles into your everyday life
seek opportunities to deepen your relationship with God
are committed to upholding the PAX values statement for the entirety of your engagement with our community and programming
*We define non-syncretic expression of Christianity as an expression of Christianity that does not blend, incorporate, or combine elements of other religions or belief systems, and is exclusively Christian in nature.
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Each cohort will vary in size, but each cohort will have a minimum of 5 people and a maximum of 15 people. Last year, the Poetry Cohort had 13 Fellows.
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The PAX Fellowship kicks off with an in-person retreat in Scottsdale, AZ.
The PAX Fellowship Connection + Contemplation Retreat is the time to meet in-person with your Cohort and Facilitator, engaging in fellowship, instruction, worship, and community. You will also be able to connect + grow with other PAX Fellows and leaders in PAX community.
Lodging and meals are included in the PAX Fellowship tuition.More details included upon admission to the PAX Fellowship.
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Please reach out at fellowship@madeforpax.org and the PAX Team will get back to you as quick as we can!
FELLOWSHIP FAQ
Here are the most frequently asked questions about The PAX Fellowship.
TESTIMONIALS
“PAX has helped solidify that justice work is Kingdom work, and because it is, I cannot do this work alone. As I continue to partner and co-create with God through contemplative practices, I am continually met with ways to play a role in creating a more just and loving world.”
Sarita Smith
Poet
PAX Alumni | 2024-2025 Fellow
“The PAX Fellowship is the community I've always craved, but didn't fully realize I needed. Growing alongside other people of color that have similar experiences and interests enriched my life immeasurably. I've found a community of people that are willing to walk alongside my hurts and triumphs.”
Joylanda Jameson
Higher Education
Administrative Coordinator
PAX Alumni | 2024-2025 Fellow
“In the PAX Fellowship, the people that entered the poetry cohort with me were brave and vulnerable, they used their writing to marry justice, to marry resistance, and to marry advocacy into their creativity.”
Jean Carlo Martinez
Paralegal for Undocumented
Youth
PAX Alumni | 2024-2025 Fellow
| 2025-2026 Fellow
“The fellowship has influenced both my personal and spiritual life in that it increased my understanding and approach to pursuing social justice and peace in my everyday life and finding ways to enhance and maintain peace through active resting.”
Nathalie Alcime
Educator
PAX Alumni | 2023-2024 Fellow
| 2024-2025 Fellow
