05/13/2026
MFA Student Highlight:
M. Ketsia Theodore-Pharel is a Haitian storyteller, educator, and children’s author whose work is deeply rooted in Haitian traditions, creating spaces that bridge generations.
“I am an oral storyteller, trained thanks to the Florida Folklife Program,” said Theodore-Pharel. “It is a Haitian pastime, the story, and I was used to storytelling, but I didn’t know it was an art form.”
Following the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, Theodore-Pharel suffered a severe depression that prompted her to explore her cultural history.
“I couldn’t go to Haiti to do anything, so I decided that I was going to be a cultural ambassador with my stories,” she said.
Theodore-Pharel is committed to fostering literacy and cultural pride, whether in classrooms, libraries, or community gatherings. She explains how storytelling in Haitian culture is often led by grandmothers and older relatives, who adapt stories to address emergent issues, likening the role of a family storyteller to that of a griot, or West African oral historian.
“Usually it is the older parent, the grandmother, the great-grand-aunt, who tells the stories, and she's like the family griot,” said Theodore-Pharel.
Theodore-Pharel's own work, including her book I’ll Make Tea about a grandmother and granddaughter, underscores the importance of intergenerational bonds and the role of oral tradition in sustaining cultural heritage. She also spoke about the Little Haiti Book Festival as a vital space for Haitian art, speaking to how storytelling lives beyond the page and continues to shape community, memory, and identity.
Read the full article about M.Ketsia Theodore-Pharel's work and the Little Haiti Book Festival:
https://www.miamitimesonline.com/lifestyles/the-2026-little-haiti-book-festival-expands-beyond-traditional-literary-forms/article_d45b592b-ce83-474c-b5f1-a08b5b461add.html
