| Year | Title | Publisher | Prize Amount | Judges |
| 1998 | Except by Nature | Graywolf Press | $5,000 | Lynn Emanuel |
| Yusef Komunyakaa | ||||
| David St. John |
Sandra Alcosser was born in Washington, D.C., on February 3, 1944, and she grew up in South Bend, Indiana. She received her B.A. from Purdue University in 1972 and an M.F.A. from the University of Montana in 1982, where she studied with Richard Hugo.