Willie Edward Taylor Carver Jr.

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Willie Edward Taylor Carver Jr. is an American educator and author from Floyd County, Kentucky. [1] In 2021, Carver was named the 2022 Kentucky Teacher of the Year, [2] after teaching French and English at Montgomery County High School. [3] In 2022, he resigned from his position, citing homophobia, [4] later that same year testifying before the United States House Oversight Subcommittee on Civil Rights and Civil Liberties. [5]

Willie is the author of Gay Poems for Red States, a collection of narrative poems published by the University Press of Kentucky in 2023. [6] [7] Gay Poems for Red States was named a Book Riot 2023 Best Book of the Year, [8] an IndieBound and American Bookseller's Association's must-have book for poetry lovers, [9] a Top Ten Best Book of Appalachia by Read Appalachia, [10] a top ten 2022 Southern Book in Garden and Gun, [11] and a 2023 Top Ten Over-The-Rainbow book by the American Library Association. [12] In 2024, Gay Poems for Red States was named a Stonewall Book Award Honor Book. [13]

Carver has published poetry and creative writing in 100 Days in Appalachia, [14] 2RulesofWriting, [15] Another Chicago Magazine, [16] Largehearted Boy, [17] Smoky Blue Literary Magazine, [18] Good River Review, [19] and Salvation South. [20]

Carver currently works at the University of Kentucky. [21] In 2023, he was featured on Good Morning America 3, where he spoke about the need for stories that reflect students' experiences. [22]

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References

  1. ↑ "Montgomery County's Willie Edward Taylor Carver Jr. named 2022 Kentucky Teacher of the Year". Kentucky Teacher. Kentucky Department of Education. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
  2. ↑ "Willie Edward Taylor Carver Jr". CCSSO: National Teacher of the Year. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
  3. ↑ Bríñez, Ana Rocío Álvarez (27 June 2022). "Kentucky's reigning Teacher of the Year says LGBTQ discrimination led him to leave his job". Courier Journal. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
  4. ↑ Will, Madeline (12 May 2022). "'I'm Afraid to Return to the Classroom': A Gay Teacher of the Year Speaks Out". Education Week. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
  5. ↑ US Government. "Testimony of Willie Carver Before the Subcommittee on Civil Rights and Civil Liberties U.S. House of Representatives May 18, 2022" (PDF). US House of Representatives. US Government. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
  6. ↑ "Review of Gay Poems for Red States". www.forewordreviews.com. 2023-04-27. Retrieved 2023-11-03.
  7. ↑ Yurcaba, Nicole (2023-06-05). "Resilience and Fortitude Prevail in "Gay Poems for Red States"". Southern Review of Books. Retrieved 2023-11-03.
  8. ↑ "The Best Books of 2023". Book Riot. 12 July 2023. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
  9. ↑ "The 2023 Indie Gift Guide For Genre Lovers". American Booksellers Association. 20 September 2023. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
  10. ↑ Winchester, Kendra (2023-11-14). "10 of the Best Appalachian Books of 2023". BOOK RIOT. Retrieved 2024-05-10.
  11. ↑ Gomez-Misserian, Gabriela (2023-12-21). "Novelist David Joy's Top Books of 2023". Garden & Gun. Retrieved 2024-05-10.
  12. ↑ "ALA's Rainbow Round Table releases Top 10 List | ALA". www.ala.org. Retrieved 2024-05-10.
  13. ↑ "UPK's 'Gay Poems for Red States' named 2024 Stonewall Book Award Honor Book". UKNow. 2024-01-29. Retrieved 2024-05-10.
  14. ↑ "Walk Carver". 100 Days in Appalachia. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
  15. ↑ "Anne Sexton: This is How I Want to Die". 2RulesofWriting. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
  16. ↑ "Three Poems by Willie Carver". Another Chicago Magazine. 14 June 2023. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
  17. ↑ "Willie Edward Taylor Carver Jr.'s Playlist for His Poetry Collection "Gay Poems for Red States"". Largehearted Boy. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
  18. ↑ "Sunday School Movie". Smoky Blue Literary Magazine. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
  19. ↑ "Waiting For God". Good River Review. 7 October 2022. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
  20. ↑ Jr, Willie Edward Taylor Carver. "The Space Dividing Us Must Be Destroyed – Salvation South" . Retrieved 2024-05-10.
  21. ↑ "Willie Carver". University of Kentucky. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
  22. ↑ "Good Morning America 3" . Retrieved 16 October 2023.


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