#GDTBATH: Mel Dalili

Mel Dalili is a storyteller.

As a tour guide with the UNC Visitors Center, Dalili guides guests across campus, weaving tales of campus history and accolades, all while sprinkling in her personal Tar Heel experiences.

Instead of focusing on rankings and academic achievement, Dalili crafts a tale of home.

“I love sharing my story and giving somebody a different perspective of what it’s like being a Carolina student,” said the native of Knoxville, Tennessee. “When I’m sharing with visitors about how much I love UNC, it’s more than talking about my GPA or an experience in a classroom. Carolina is just so unique because the University is what I think about when I think of home. It’s such a rare thing for me to experience.”

As the Youth Poet Laureate of Tennessee, Dalili shares her personal experiences through her poems at in-person events at Tennessee high schools. (Submitted photo)

‘Art is universal’

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Dalili’s parents split, and she had to navigate homelessness, financial struggles and difficult family relationships. She turned to poetry to help process her emotions and correct misconceptions about her lived experiences.

She recently published two collections of her poems, “To Make it Out Alive” and “Thank You for Staying.”

“My poetry is an art, and art is universal. After I finish a poem, it gets sent into the void, and it’s not mine anymore,” said Dalili. “Then everybody else can interpret it for themselves and relate it to their experiences.”

In 2023 Dalili was named the inaugural Knoxville Youth Poet Laureate, and she now serves as the Youth Poet Laureate of Tennessee. Selected for the statewide laureate based on her artistic merit and community engagement, Dalili shares her personal experiences at webinars, workshops and in-person events at Tennessee high schools.

As part of her role, the Carolina sophomore has spoken to Tennessee legislators about gun violence, homelessness, child abuse, suicide prevention and racial injustice.

“I’m a representation of Tennessee youth, especially when it comes to situations where their voice needs to be heard or considered relating to policy,” said Dalili.

A ‘beautiful surprise’

While the spontaneity of her life experiences led her to Carolina, Dalili can’t imagine being anywhere else. It’s a necessary chapter in her story.

Though her family dynamics were strained, she quickly created a family who helped her apply to Carolina and settle into campus. She recalls her high school guidance counselor pushing her to apply to college — something Dalili didn’t think feasible — and handing her the Fiske Guide to Colleges to conduct research. She carried it “literally everywhere,” starring ones to consider. She wound up applying to 18 colleges, hoping one would offer her financial aid.

On April 13, 2023, Dalili got a “beautiful surprise” when she learned she was a Carolina Covenant scholar. The Carolina Covenant, a full financial aid package that allows students to graduate from the University debt-free, also offers support to help scholars thrive at Carolina and beyond.

“The Covenant is an embodiment of Carolina’s service,” said Dalili. “They are giving to thousands of students, without expecting anything in return.”

In her time at Carolina, Dalili gives back by giving tours of the University and staying involved with the Carolina Covenant and other organizations on campus.

After earning her bachelor’s degree in biology with minors in poetry and painting, Dalili hopes to attend the Adams School of Dentistry and become an orthodontist.

“Carolina chose me,” said Dalili. “It is such a beautiful thing because everything lined up the way it was supposed to.”