Literary legend and retired Virginia Tech professor Nikki Giovanni completed her final chapter on Monday, December 9, 2024.
Recognized by Oprah Winfrey as one of 25 living legends, Giovanni passed away at the age of 81 following her third battle with cancer. She had retired from Virginia Tech in 2022.
An acclaimed poet, activist, and University Distinguished Professor Emerita, Giovanni dedicated 35 years to teaching in the Department of English at Virginia Tech. Even after retirement, she remained active in speaking engagements, travel, and writing. In April 2024, she returned to the Virginia Tech campus to present the annual Giovanni-Steger Poetry Prize Award to undergraduate students. This competition, created in 2006 by Giovanni and the late Virginia Tech President Charles W. Steger, offers monetary prizes to student poets.
“We can never let words be silenced,” Giovanni asserted during a ceremony at the Moss Arts Center. “We can never let words be taken away from us. We can never let people, because they don’t like what we’re saying, shut us up. Words are the most important things that human beings have. And no matter what the situation, we must always remember to use them.”
Giovanni gained worldwide recognition for her poetry, essays, and written work addressing social issues such as race and gender. Her writing served as a powerful call for action. Over her illustrious career, she received more than 30 honorary degrees, published at least 11 illustrated children’s books, and won an Emmy for Exceptional Merit in Documentary Filmmaking for “Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project.” Her latest poetry collection, “The Last Book,” is set to be published in fall 2025.
“To know Nikki was to be forever changed by her,” said Laura Belmonte, dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences. “One minute, she would say something that would make you laugh so hard you would cry. The next minute, she would say something that would haunt you for months and make you reevaluate the world as you knew it. She was a force of nature, and our college, Virginia Tech, and the world itself are better for her impact on all of them.”
Giovanni marked significant events at Virginia Tech with her words, including poems commemorating the April 16 tragedy and the Class of 2020’s commencement ceremony during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Nikki Giovanni was a treasure who lived out Ut Prosim in countless ways,” stated Virginia Tech President Tim Sands. “She used her literary gifts to motivate change, encourage critical thought, inspire us to dream, and provide comfort in times of sadness and grief. Her spirit endures through her words and the students she inspired to express themselves through writing and poetry. She will be deeply missed and forever remembered by her Hokie family.”
In 2023, Giovanni received Virginia Tech’s prestigious Ut Prosim Scholar Award.
Giovanni supported the university through various means, including her membership in the Legacy Society. In 2010, she and her partner Virginia Fowler established the Fowler-Giovanni Fund—a legacy gift aimed at supporting initiatives for visiting scholars and students within the Department of English.
Although born in Knoxville, Tennessee, Giovanni grew up in Ohio while spending summers with her grandparents. She joined Virginia Tech in 1987 after being recruited by Fowler. Giovanni brought a unique spirit of community and inclusion to campus life by hosting events such as campus-wide fish fries and inviting renowned authors like Maya Angelou and Rita Dove.
As a professor, Giovanni aimed to teach students how to think critically and ask probing questions. After retirement, she expressed that she would miss engaging regularly with her students.
“I want my students to not accept what they are hearing but to look and say ‘what kind of sense does this make?’ and ‘what is going to be the end result?’” she remarked upon her retirement.
New York Times bestselling author Kwame Alexander recalled his first class with Giovanni—advanced poetry—which did not start well for him.
“I was that student who argued everything and pushed back on anything she offered,” Alexander said. “I thought I knew more than she did about poetry. Yet she kept letting me take her classes; she kept teaching me; she saw what was possible for me and shaped me into who I am today.”
Giovanni became Alexander’s “literary mother.”
“I’m so grateful and so much better because of her,” he added.
Surviving Giovanni are Fowler; her son Thomas; granddaughter Kai; and other family members.
“We will forever feel blessed to have shared a legacy and love with our dear cousin,” said Allison Ragan, Giovanni’s cousin, in a family statement.