New York, NY (December 3, 2020)— The Academy of American Poets is pleased to announce the eleven finalists of the 2021 National Poetry Month Poster Competition for Students. More than 145 high school students from across the country responded to an open call for submissions, and eleven students from six different states have been named finalists. The winning student, to be determined by Maira Kalman, renowned illustrator, and Renée Watson, New York Times-bestselling author and poet, will have their artwork featured on 100,000+ posters that will be distributed for free to schools, libraries, bookstores, and families nationwide for the April 2021 celebration of the twenty-fifth anniversary of National Poetry Month.
The finalists are:
Bao L., Grade 12, New York
Nancy Y., Grade 11, New York
Tessa W., Grade 12, Oregon
Hafsat S., Grade 11, New York
Angelina L., Grade 11, New York
Marisa M., Grade 12, Connecticut
Kyle T., Grade 12, New York
Beatrix P., Grade 9, New York
Francine W., Grade 12, Maine
Erin Y., Grade 12, Hawaii
Lauren H., Grade 10, New Hampshire
The winning student, who will be announced in January 2021, will be featured on Poets.org and in American Poets magazine, and will receive $1,000 in cash and prizes. The runner-up will receive $250.
About National Poetry Month — Celebrating 25 years in 2021
National Poetry Month was inaugurated by the Academy of American Poets in 1996 and takes place each April. Over the years, it has become the largest literary celebration in the world with schools, publishers, libraries, booksellers, community centers, and poets celebrating poetry's vital place in our culture. The special month of programs is made possible by more than 70 poetry partners and sponsors, as well as the National Endowment for the Arts.
About the Academy of American Poets
The Academy of American Poets is the nation’s leading champion of poets and poetry with supporters in all fifty states. Founded in 1934, the organization annually awards more funds to individual poets than any other organization through its prize program, giving a total of $1,250,000 to more than 200 poets at various stages of their careers. The Academy also produces Poets.org, the world’s largest publicly funded website for poets and poetry; originated and organizes National Poetry Month; publishes the popular Poem-a-Day series and American Poets magazine; provides award-winning resources to K–12 educators, including the Teach This Poem series; hosts an annual series of poetry readings and special events; and coordinates a national Poetry Coalition working together to promote the value poets bring to the country’s culture. This year, in response to the global health crisis, the organization joined six other national organizations to launch Artist Relief, a multidisciplinary coalition of arts grantmakers and a consortium of foundations working to provide resources and funding to the country’s individual poets, writers, and artists who are impacted by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.