City of Dallas, TX
09/14/2021 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 09/14/2021 13:52
Dallas Public Library launches Youth Poet Laureate of Dallas program
DALLAS - As part of Dallas Public Library's annual Express Yourself! poetry competition, one student will be chosen as the Youth Poet Laureate of Dallas and receive a $1,000 scholarship.
The new program is designed to support the literary talent of Dallas young people and to amplify youth voices. It also serves as a counterpart to the Poet Laureate of Dallas, a position created earlier this year by Dallas Public Library, the Office of Arts and Culture and Deep Vellum. Both poet laureates will be announced at the Express Yourself! Award Ceremony in April.
Applications for Youth Poet Laureate are being accepted from Sept. 20, 2021 to Jan. 31, 2022 in conjunction with the 26th annual Express Yourself! Youth Poetry Competition and Cover Art Contest.
The Youth Poet Laureate is a one-year term and includes publication of the writer's work in the annual Express Yourself! Anthology, public readings and other Express Yourself! events.
Eligible candidates must reside within the city of Dallas or attend a school within the city limits and be between the ages of 13 and 18 on May 1, 2022, the start of the laureate term. Complete information can be found at www.dallaslibrary.org/poetry.
The Express Yourself! program is open to Dallas poets and artists in grades 2 through 12. Sixty poetry finalists will have their work published in the bound anthology, and 10 art finalists will have their work printed on the cover and inside pages of the anthology. Overall and grade-level winners are announced at the April award ceremony. Entries can be submitted through the website.
Teachers can request in-school workshops led by local poets to inspire students to write poems to submit to the competition. Requests can be made through the website.
The Youth Poet Laureate of Dallas and the Express Yourself! Youth Poetry Competition and Cover Art Contest are funded by the Dealey Family Foundation, the Friends of the Dallas Public Library and Dallas Public Library.
Dallas Public Library operates the J. Erik Jonsson Central Library and 29 branch locations, serving more than 9 million visitors each year. A library card is free for any Dallas resident. For information on the many free programs and services available at Dallas Public Library, visit www.dallaslibrary.org.
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