In celebration of National Poetry Month 2015, the Academy of American Poets teamed up with 826 National, a youth writing organization, to produce Read This Poem, a celebration of poets in cities with 826 chapters: Ann Arbor/Detroit, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C.
Each 826 chapter named a local Poetry Ambassador who selected a poem written by a poet in their community and wrote a short essay about it. The Poetry Ambassador then asked the poet to do the same (select a poem by a local poet and write about it), and so on, creating a kind of poetry chain. Local poets supported 826 chapters in a variety of ways, including volunteering. The poems were revealed each Wednesday during the month of April. The Academy of American Poets and 826 National regularly collaborate to distribute lesson plans to teachers interested in bringing poetry into their classrooms, and by inviting students from 826 centers to participate in National Poetry Month education projects.
Read This Poem was inspired by The McSweeney's Book of Poets Picking Poets, published by McSweeney's in 2007.
