About GhettoGeek
Spoken Word Educator
As a freelance spoken word educator, Thomas 'GhettoGeek' Owoo has delivered bespoke rap and poetry workshops across schools nationally. He has been commissioned to write and/or deliver spoken word education programmes for organisations such as; The Rimbaud & Verlaine Foundation; T.S Eliot Foundation; Modern Poetry in Translation Magazine; Ministry of Stories; Breakin Convention and Crisis UK.
GhettoGeek completed his two year role as a poet-in-residence at Elsley Primary School where, along with delivering PSHE through poetry, also trained over 40 poets in the community in teaching pedagogy and how to deliver dynamic and interactive school workshops.
Social, Emotional Mental Health Advisory Teacher and Behaviour Management Consultant
Thomas has trained countless schools nationwide as a behaviour management consultant and is currently a SEMH (Social Emotional and Mental Health difficulties) advisory teacher for Brent council where he trains schools, staff and children in finding ways to help reduce challenging behaviour and exclusions.
Qualified Teacher Status (Mainstream and Alternative education)
Thomas ‘GhettoGeek’ Owoo is a former psychology and sociology teacher who, for last 16 years, has been using rap, spoken word and poetry to engage disaffected young people in northwest London. He was also a manager of an alternative education seclusion unit while also devising, in his mainstream teaching, an innovative sociology resource that he called ‘Sociology in Rap’.
Performance Poet
Ghettogeek only started performing within the London poetry circuit over the last four years after his A-level sociology class in Kilburn (The#Sociology7) asked him to perform his teaching resource called “Sociology in Rap” out in the community. Since listening to them it has led to him being published in two books, performing nationally and featuring at events at the Clapham Grand, Lyric Theatre, Nozstock Festival, Margate Soul Festival and the Edinburgh Fringe BBC Poetry Slam. He also performed on Mim Shaikh's show on the BBC Asian Network.
Commissioned Poet
Thomas has also been commissioned to write and perform poems by organisations such as Teach First, 100 Black Men of London, Crisis UK, Brent Council’s Virtual School for Looked-After Children Annual Achievement Event and the Mayor of Brent’s Annual Fundraiser.
The most recent accolade Thomas has received for his poetry was becoming one of the winners of the National Poetry Library’s first ever Instagram poetry competition where his ‘NHS Crisis’ spoken word animation video was displayed in the world’s largest poetry library at the Southbank Centre as an part of an exhibition that lasted over two months.