Upcoming West Chester University Pop-Up Poetry Festival Will Feature Workshops, Award Presentations, and Student Performances
West Chester University’s Poetry Center will host a Pop-Up Poetry Festival on Apr. 14 and 15 to celebrate National Poetry Month.
The event’s theme is “Renaissance” and invites participants to delve into the world of poetry through a lens of hope while developing an appreciation for the craft of writing poetry.
Festival highlights include a keynote address given by Patricia Smith, the recipient of the 2021 Ruth Lilly Poetry Prize for Lifetime Achievement presented by the Poetry Foundation.
The festival will feature the Spencer Undergraduate Poetry Awards ceremony, outdoor readings and performances on the Academic Quad, and various activities designed for emerging and established poets. The festival is free and open to the public.
WCU Poetry Center Director Cherise A. Pollard said she is excited about the festival, a new event for the University.
“Our Pop-Up Poetry Festival gives WCU students, faculty, as well as members of our community, the opportunity to explore the world of poetry as we celebrate each other and showcase our talents,” she said. “Please join us for a wonderful festival.”
The festival begins Sunday, Apr. 14, with the Youth Poetry Contest Award Ceremony (Grades 3-12) at 2:00 PM in the Sciences and Engineering Center and the Commons (SECC) Room 108. A panel presentation follows the ceremony, “We Come Bearing Gifts: New Books from Four Midwestern Poets,” highlighting new works by poets Lee Bahan, Daniel Bourne, John Drury, and Allison Joseph.
The second day of the festival, Apr. 15, includes a reading at Sykes Theater at 10:00 AM, a poetry workshop with poet and former WCU Poet-in-Residence Ernest Hilbert at 2:00 PM in Main Hall 214, and culminates with the Spencer Awards Ceremony and Smith’s keynote address at 4:00 PM in SECC 108.
This year, the Poetry Center awarded more than $10,000 in prizes, highlighting the exceptional talent of students nationwide. Awards were distributed across several categories:
- Winner: Madelyn Dietz, Princeton University, for “Alice“
- 2nd Place: Natalie Fraser, Swarthmore College, for “Mango Man Ghazal“
- Winner: Anya Chu, Swarthmore College, for “Brighton Beach with Папочка”
- 2nd Place: Mouse Page, Maryville University of St. Louis, for “Mount Shasta“
Sonnet Category:
- Winner: Noor Bukhari, West Chester University, for “Nattergalen“
Villanelle Category:
- Winner: Joey Richards, Rosemont College, for “Hidden“
- Winner: Jacqueline Mendez, Western Washington University, for “Si mañana amanezco con cuerpo diferente/If I were to wake up“
- Winner: Guy D’Annolfo for “Late Winter and Early Spring in the Arboretum.”
Hilbert, the WCU Fall 2023 Poet-in-Residence, judged the Spencer Undergraduate and Mills Awards.
“Submissions for the Spencer Awards this year were remarkably robust,” he said. “Equally remarkable is the exhilarating array of voices, techniques, and poetic forms to be found among them, some notably complex, confident, and accomplished.”
Another award being presented is the Donald Justice Poetry Prize, which was judged this year by keynote speaker Smith. The prize recognizes the distinguished American poet, teacher, and Pulitzer Prize winner, Donald Justice, and includes the winner’s manuscript being published by Autumn House Press.
This year’s winner is poet and essayist Sunni Brown Wilkinson for the manuscript Rodeo, to be published in 2025.
The Spencer Poetry Awards, created at the West Chester University Poetry Center in 2005 by Kean W. Spencer to honor his mother, Iris N. Spencer, play a significant role in supporting the poetry community at WCU.
Jen Bacon, Dean of the College of Arts and Humanities, said the Spencer family’s ongoing commitment to poetry has allowed the University to expand poetry programming.
“Their unwavering support enriches our students’ educational journey and significantly contributes to poetry flourishing within our university community and beyond,” she said.
Following the festival, the Languages and Cultures department, with the Poetry Center, will host “The First Poetry and Languages Day: A Multicultural Exchange” on Apr. 16.
Peruvian poet Roger Santiváñez will offer a keynote address of his insights into the poetic process. There will also be workshops taught by critically acclaimed Latinx poets David Acosta and Miguel Bacho. The event also includes a multilingual poetry recital, workshop, and class about the dynamics of translation, all emphasizing the vibrancy and diversity of world poetry. All events will be held in Mitchell Hall.
The West Chester University Poetry Center invites all to engage in these enriching experiences, which promise to inspire and foster a deep appreciation for poetry.
Learn more about West Chester University (WCU), the largest member of Pennsylvania’s State System of Higher Education, comprising 10 state-owned universities within the Commonwealth of PA. The popular University maintains a consistent presence on both Money magazine’s The Best Colleges in America list and America’s Top Colleges list by Forbes. The University is also a Military Friendly Schools gold status member and has received the Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (HEED) Award from INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine for four consecutive years.
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