In 2023, Junious Ward was named an Academy of American Poets Laureate Fellow. Ward will establish a citywide violence prevention program for Charlotte’s youth in collaboration with the Mecklenburg County Public Health’s Office of Violence Prevention. He also plans to establish Charlotte’s first youth poet laureate position. The youth poet laureate will work with Ward to conduct public readings, civic events, programming, and community outreach. The individual will also receive mentorship and guidance from the Charlotte poet laureate in the areas of writing, performance, event planning, and implementation.