| Poet Laureate of Nebraska | |
|---|---|
Incumbent since 2025Jewel Rodgers | |
| Type | Poet Laureate |
| Formation | 1921 |
| First holder | John G. Neihardt |
The titles Nebraska Poet Laureate and Nebraska State Poet are applied by the government of Nebraska to an official state poet.
John G. Neihardt was designated Nebraska Poet Laureate by the Nebraska Legislature in 1921. In 1927 the legislature extended his title to "Nebraska Poet Laureate in Perpetuity." Neihardt remains officially the state's only poet laureate today. Subsequent official poets were therefore given a new title, Nebraska State Poet. [1]
As the first State Poet, William Kloefkorn started a tradition of promoting literature and literacy in the state using his official title. Poets are nominated by a committee of arts and humanities organizations in the state, which then forwards a list of finalists to the Governor of Nebraska for the final selection. [1] The most recent is Jewel Rodgers, the youngest person and first African-American to hold the title.
A poet laureate is a poet officially appointed by a government or conferring institution, typically expected to compose poems for special events and occasions. Albertino Mussato of Padua and Francesco Petrarca (Petrarch) of Arezzo were the first to be crowned poets laureate after the classical age, respectively in 1315 and 1342. In Britain, the term dates from the appointment of Bernard André by Henry VII of England. The royal office of Poet Laureate in England dates from the appointment of John Dryden in 1668.
Bancroft is a village in Cuming County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 496 as of the 2020 census.
John Gneisenau Neihardt was an American writer and poet, amateur historian and ethnographer. Born at the end of the American settlement of the Plains, he became interested in the lives of those who had been a part of the European-American migration, as well as the Indigenous peoples whom they had displaced.
Rita Frances Dove is an American poet and essayist. From 1993 to 1995, she served as Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress. She is the first African American to have been appointed since the position was created by an act of Congress in 1986 from the previous "consultant in poetry" position (1937–86). Dove also received an appointment as "special consultant in poetry" for the Library of Congress's bicentennial year from 1999 to 2000. Dove is the second African American to receive the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry, in 1987, and she served as the Poet Laureate of Virginia from 2004 to 2006. Since 1989, she has been teaching at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, where she held the chair of Commonwealth Professor of English from 1993 to 2020; as of 2020, she holds the chair of Henry Hoyns Professor of Creative Writing.
Theodore J. Kooser is an American poet. He won the Pulitzer Prize in Poetry in 2005. He served as Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 2004 to 2006. Kooser was one of the first poets laureate selected from the Great Plains, and is known for his conversational style of poetry.
Black Elk Speaks is a 1932 book by John G. Neihardt, an American poet and writer, who relates the story of Black Elk, an Oglala Lakota medicine man. Black Elk spoke in Lakota and Black Elk's son, Ben Black Elk, who was present during the talks, translated his father's words into English. Neihardt made notes during these talks which he later used as the basis for his book.
Wayne State College (WSC) is a public college in Wayne, Nebraska. It is part of the Nebraska State College System and enrolls 4,202 students. The college opened as a public normal school in 1910 after the state purchased the private Nebraska Normal College. The State Normal College became State Normal School and Teacher's College in 1921. This was changed to Nebraska State Teachers College at Wayne in 1949 and the present name was adopted in 1963.
The Nebraska Hall of Fame officially recognizes prominent individuals from the State of Nebraska. Twenty-six busts located on the second floor of the Nebraska State Capitol commemorate members of the Hall of Fame. Nebraska Medal of Honor recipients are also members of the Nebraska Hall of Fame. A plaque with the names of Medal of Honor recipients is located in Memorial Chamber—the fourteenth floor of the capitol.
William Charles "Bill" Kloefkorn, was a Nebraska poet and educator based in Lincoln, Nebraska. He was the author of twelve collections of poetry, two short story collections, a collection of children's Christmas stories, and four memoirs. Kloefkorn was professor of English from 1962 to his retirement in 1997 to professor emeritus of English at Nebraska Wesleyan University.
The Poet Laureate of New Jersey was an honor presented biennially by the Governor of New Jersey to a distinguished New Jersey poet. Created in 1999, this position existed for less than four years and was abolished by the legislature effective July 2, 2003. When the New Jersey State Legislature created the laureate position, the bill provided specifically for the creation of an award named in honor of twentieth-century poet and physician William Carlos Williams (1883–1963) who resided in Rutherford, New Jersey. However, the legislature recognized that the award's recipient would "be considered the poet laureate of the State of New Jersey for a period of two years." Before the position was abolished, only two poets, Gerald Stern and Amiri Baraka, had been appointed as the state's poet laureate.
The John G. Neihardt State Historic Site, also known as the Neihardt Center, is located in Bancroft, Nebraska, United States and features museum exhibits about Nebraska Poet Laureate John Neihardt.
The Poet Laureate of Alabama is the poet laureate for the U.S. state of Alabama. The position was established in 1931 by an act of the Alabama Legislature. Poets Laureate, who must have been Alabama residents for at least 15 years, are chosen by the governor, and serve 4-year terms.
The Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress, commonly referred to as the United States Poet Laureate, serves as the official poet of the United States. During their term, the poet laureate seeks to raise the national consciousness to a greater appreciation of the reading and writing of poetry. The position was modeled on the Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom. Begun in 1937, and formerly known as the Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress, the present title was devised and authorized by an Act of Congress in 1985. Appointed by the Librarian of Congress, the poet laureate's office is administered by the Center for the Book. For children's poets, the Poetry Foundation awards the Young People's Poet Laureate.
Twyla M. Hansen is an American poet, who served as the Nebraska State Poet until 2018. She is the third Nebraskan and first woman to hold this position, to which she was appointed by Governor Dave Heineman in November 2013.
The Poet Laureate of Colorado is the poet laureate for the U.S. state of Colorado. Colorado Poets Laureate are appointed to four-year terms. They are nominated by Colorado Creative Industries and Colorado Humanities & Center for the Book, and chosen by the Governor. The State of Colorado also appointed singer/songwriter John Denver in 1974.
The Poet Laureate of Connecticut is the poet laureate for the U.S. state of Connecticut. The Poet Laureate of Connecticut was established in 1985 by Public Act 85-221 of the Connecticut General Assembly. Five-year residents of the state with a demonstrated career in poetry are eligible for the honorary appointment as an advocate for poetry and literary arts.
Jewel Rodgers is an American poet and Nebraska State Poet. She is the first African American to fill the role. Rodgers lives in Omaha.
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