The Poet Laureate of Maine is the poet laureate for the U.S. state of Maine. The Maine State Poet Laureate is appointed by the governor for a 5 year term, and the program is managed by the Maine Arts Commission. [1] [2] The program was established in 1995 via Maine Public Law 1995, Chapter 264 and codified via Maine Revised Statutes, Title 27, Chapter 15, Subchapter 2. [1] [2]
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.
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.
The California Poet Laureate is the poet laureate for the state of California. In 2001, Governor Gray Davis created the official position. Each poet laureate for the State of California is appointed by the Governor of California for a term of two years and must be confirmed by the senate. Previous to Governor Davis' action in creating the position, the title was unofficial and the position was held for life. The program is run by the California Arts Council.
Leo Connellan was an American poet of the Beat Generation born in Portland, Maine, who served as Connecticut's Poet Laureate from 1996 until his death in 2001.
Joy Harjo is an American poet, musician, playwright, and author. She served as the 23rd United States Poet Laureate, the first Native American to hold that honor. She was also only the second Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to have served three terms. Harjo is a citizen of the Muscogee Nation and belongs to Oce Vpofv. She is an important figure in the second wave of the literary Native American Renaissance of the late 20th century. She studied at the Institute of American Indian Arts, completed her undergraduate degree at University of New Mexico in 1976, and earned an MFA degree at the University of Iowa in its creative writing program.
Elizabeth "Betsy" Sholl is an American poet who was poet laureate of Maine from 2006 to 2011 and has authored nine collections of poetry. Sholl has received several poetry awards, including the 1991 AWP Award, and the 2015 Maine Literary Award, as well as receiving fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Maine Arts Commission.
Wesley McNair is an American poet, writer, editor, and professor. He has authored 10 volumes of poetry, most recently, Lovers of the Lost: New & Selected Poems, The Lost Child: Ozark Poems, The Unfastening, and Dwellers in the House of the Lord. He has also written three books of prose, including a memoir, The Words I Chose: A Memoir of Family and Poetry. In addition, he has edited several anthologies of Maine writing, and served as a guest editor in poetry for the 2010 Pushcart Prize Annual.
William Roorbach is an American novelist, short story and nature writer, memoirist, journalist, blogger and critic. He has authored fiction and nonfiction works including Big Bend, which won the Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction and the O. Henry Prize. Roorbach's memoir in nature, Temple Stream, won the Maine Literary Award for Nonfiction, 2005. His novel, Life Among Giants, won the 2013 Maine Literary Award for Fiction.[18] And The Remedy for Love, also a novel, was one of six finalists for the 2014 Kirkus Fiction Prize. His book, The Girl of the Lake, is a short story collection published in June 2017. His most recent novel is Lucky Turtle, published in 2022.
Baron Wormser is an American poet.
The Poet Laureate of Texas is the poet laureate for the U.S. state of Texas.
The Poet Laureate of Washington is a poet designated by the government of the US state of Washington to promote poetry generally, and Washington poetry specifically, within the state. The office of Poet Laureate of Washington was established by an act of the Washington State Legislature in 2007.
The Poet Laureate of Oklahoma is the poet laureate for the U.S. state of Oklahoma.
The Poet Laureate of Alaska also known as Alaska State Writer Laureate is the poet laureate for the U.S. state of Alaska. The first Alaska Poet Laureate, Margaret Mielke, was appointed in 1963. The program expanded to include other kinds of writers in 1996.
The Poet Laureate of Hawaii or Ka Haku-Mele O Hawaii is the poet laureate for the U.S. state of Hawaii. Prior to statehood Don Blanding, originally from Oklahoma, was unofficially referred to as the poet laureate of Hawaii. In 1951 Hawaii Territorial Senator Thelma Akana Harrison in concurrent resolution 28, declared Lloyd Stone, who was originally from California, poet laureate. When the modern program was established, Native Hawaiian Kealoha was appointed on May 3, 2012, and he is the first poet laureate for the state of Hawaii, serving through 2022. In January 2023, Brandy Nālani McDougall began her appointment as Poet Laureate of Hawaii, which she will serve through 2025.
The Poet Laureate of Idaho or Writer in Residence is the poet laureate for the U.S. state of Idaho. After 1982 the title was changed to Writer in Residence.
The Poet Laureate of Kansas is the poet laureate for the U.S. state of Kansas. The program is managed by the Kansas Creative Arts Industries Commission.
The Poet Laureate of Wisconsin is the poet laureate for the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The position and nominating commission was created by executive order from Governor Tommy Thompson on July 31, 2000. On February 4, 2011, Governor Scott Walker discontinued state sponsorship and sent a letter to the members of the Wisconsin Poet Laureate Commission to inform them it has been terminated. The Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts & Letters assumed the role of the commission May of that year.
The State Poet of Rhode Island is the poet laureate for the U.S. state of Rhode Island. The program was established in 1987, is codified in Chapter 42-100 of the State of Rhode Island General Laws. The five-year appointment by the Governor carries an annual salary of $1,000.
The Poet Laureate of Wyoming is the poet laureate for the U.S. state of Wyoming. The position of Poet Laureate was created by executive order in 1981 with a variable term of service. The post became a customary two-year term starting on statehood day.
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