Poet Laureate of Washington

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.

Poet Laureate of Washington
Incumbent Tod Marshall
Nominator	Washington Arts Commission
Appointer	Governor of Washington
Term length	two years
Constituting instrument	Revised Code of Washington
Formation	2007
First holder	Samuel Green
Salary	$20,000
Website	wapoetlaureate.org

History

In 1931, Ella Higginson was named "Poet Laureate of Washington" by the Washington State Federation of Women's Clubs, however, the position was an unofficial, privately recognized post.[1] The office of Poet Laureate of Washington was not officially established until 2007 when the Washington legislature enacted a bill introduced by state senator Ken Jacobsen to create the office.[2] Jacobsen's original proposal called for the poet laureate to be paid with a firkin of beer annually, however, the act as finally adopted simply specifies that the poet laureate "shall receive compensation at a level determined by the [Washington Arts] commission".[3][4]

Kathleen Flenniken is a former Poet Laureate of Washington.

From 2009 to 2011 the office of poet laureate was vacant due to a paucity of state funds.[5] In 2016 Gonzaga University professor Tod Marshall was appointed the fourth Poet Laureate of Washington.[6] Marshall's major initiative during his term is Washington 129, an anthology of 129 poems gathered from Washingtonians meant to represent the 129 years (as of 2018) since Washington was admitted into the United States.[7]

Office

The role of the Poet Laureate of Washington is to "build awareness and appreciation of poetry — including the state’s legacy of poetry — through public readings, workshops, lectures and presentations in communities, schools, colleges, universities, and other public settings in geographically diverse areas of the state".[8] Poets Laureate of Washington are appointed for a two-year term by the Governor of Washington acting on the recommendation of the Washington Arts Commission, an independent agency of the Washington state government, from a list of self-nominated candidates. The incumbent is eligible for reappointment one time. The office's only statutory qualifications are that the candidate be a resident of Washington and a published poet, though the commission is empowered to establish additional criteria.[4]

The Poet Laureate of Washington receives an annual stipend of $20,000, which is primarily funded by grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and private donors.[5]

Notable poets laureate of Washington

• Kathleen Flenniken[9]
• Samuel Green[10]

See also

• United States Poet Laureate

References

1. "Higginson, Ella Rhoads (1862?–1940)". historylink.org. History Ink. Retrieved 12 May 2016.
2. "Senate's idea man embraces the chaos". Spokesman Review. Associated Press. 5 March 2007. Retrieved 12 May 2016.
3. Jenkins, Don (20 April 2007). "State creates position of poet laureate". Tacoma News Tribune. Retrieved 12 May 2016.
4. Revised Code of Washington 43.46.081 Poet laureate program. Code Reviser. 2015.
5. Miller, Stephen (14 February 2012). "CH organization sponsors state's poet laureate". Capitol Hill Times. Archived from the original on 19 August 2015. Retrieved 12 May 2016.
6. "Meet Your New Poet Laureate: Tod Marshall". wapoetlaureate.org. Poet Laureate of Washington. Retrieved 12 May 2016.
7. "Submit your poetry to a new anthology, Washington 129" (PDF). Poet Laureate of Washington. Retrieved 12 May 2016.
8. "Washington State Poet Laureate". humanities.org. Humanities Washington. Retrieved 12 May 2016.
9. "Past Washington State Poets Laureate". humanities.org. Humanities Washington. Archived from the original on 11 June 2016. Retrieved 12 May 2016.
10. "Samuel Green". arts.gov. National Endowment for the Arts. Retrieved 12 May 2016.