News Summary
Jessica Care Moore, Detroit’s poet laureate, has been awarded a $50,000 grant by the Academy of American Poets. This funding will support various community-centric poetry initiatives including intergenerational workshops and an audio poetry chapbook featuring local haikus. Moore plans to enhance poetry’s accessibility and relevance through public art collaborations, advocating for its inclusion in school curricula. The grant is part of a larger fellowship initiative aimed at promoting poetry and supporting community engagement across the U.S.
Detroit has taken a significant step forward in promoting poetry and community engagement with the recent announcement that Jessica Care Moore, the city’s poet laureate, has been awarded a $50,000 grant by the Academy of American Poets. This funding is part of a larger $1.1 million fellowship program aimed at enhancing the visibility and accessibility of poetry within communities across the United States.
The grant will allow Moore to launch a variety of community-focused projects during her term as poet laureate, which she began in 2022. Central to her plans are intergenerational workshops designed to inspire participants of all ages to explore poetry. This initiative is particularly focused on fostering pride in Detroit and encouraging younger generations to connect with poetry in new and meaningful ways.
As part of her fellowship, Moore is developing an “audio poetry chapbook” that will feature haikus submitted by Detroit residents. This project intends to capture and highlight the diverse voices and stories of those who call Detroit home. The readings from this chapbook will be recorded and made freely available online, aiming to increase access to poetry for a wider audience.
Moore’s plans also include collaborating with skilled muralists to create a series of murals that feature poetry and celebrate Detroit’s vibrant culture. By incorporating poetry into public art, she hopes to create spaces where community members can encounter poetry in everyday life, thus reinforcing its relevance and importance.
While the $50,000 grant serves as a strong foundation for her projects, Moore has indicated that the total cost will likely exceed this amount. She is actively seeking additional funding to ensure the success and expansion of her initiatives.
To further enhance the accessibility of poetry, Moore is advocating for its integration into school curricula beyond the standard English classes. This effort seeks to introduce students to poetry as a vital form of expression and storytelling, emphasizing that anyone can participate in creating poetry, especially through formats like haikus, which are limited to 17 syllables.
Moore’s recognition as an internationally known artist with award-winning poetry collections and children’s books positions her as a prominent figure in the literary community. Her contributions have garnered appreciation from city officials, including Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan, who has noted her positive impact on the community.
Since 2019, the Academy of American Poets has allocated a total of $7.65 million in fellowships to poets laureate throughout the United States, creating over 40 poet laureate positions in various cities. This initiative underscores the importance of poetry as a medium for cultural expression and social dialogue.
Through her various projects and collaborations, Jessica Care Moore is set to leave a lasting impression on the Detroit community by making poetry more accessible and relevant to everyday life. Her efforts reflect a commitment to not only honoring the literary tradition but also to inspiring a new generation of poets and poetry lovers in Detroit.
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Additional Resources
- The Detroit News
- Wikipedia: Poetry
- WILX
- Google Search: poet laureate Michigan
- Bridge Detroit
- Google Scholar: Detroit poet laureate
- Lansing City Pulse
- Encyclopedia Britannica: poet laureate
- Rolling Out
- Google News: Jessica Care Moore

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