Simbaa, Lincoln University’s Magazine of the Arts, is published annually in the spring, and features poetry, fiction, essays, art, and photography.
Building on the legacy of Langston Hughes, Melvin Tolson, Larry Neal, and Gil Scott-Heron, Simbaa works to promote, preserve, and progress Lincoln’s rich history of literary achievement. The magazine presents the black student experience as both serious and fun, noble and joyous, giving voice to a community that has been historically underrepresented in mainstream publications. For Simbaa’s readers and contributors, the journal becomes a memento of their time at America’s first degree-granting HBCU, a testament to the school’s diverse and ever-evolving artistic attitude.
Simbaa, which means “lion” in Swahili, was founded in 2006 by Professor David Amadio and the late Professor William Adams. In 2019, Professor Amadio began teaching Literary Magazine Publishing, a course that allows students to curate, edit, design, and distribute Simbaa. The magazine receives funding from the Department of Languages and Literature and from Susan Tatum, widow of alumnus Bill Tatum, former editor and publisher of The Amsterdam News.
If you would like to learn more about Simbaa, or if you’re interested in taking Literary Magazine Publishing as an elective, please contact Editor-in-Chief David Amadio.
