Applications for the 2025-2026 Madison Youth Poet Laureate are open throughout National Poetry Month, beginning on April 1, 2025, and closing on April 30, 2025. To be eligible, applicants must be between the ages of 13 and 19 at the time of selection and must reside within the City of Madison.
People interested in applying to become the Madison Youth Poet Laureate can apply online.
Apply Here
Applicants are required to attend and read one of their submitted poems at the virtual Madison Arts Commission meeting on May 13, 2025, at 5:30pm. The selected poet will be announced in June and will begin their term in September of 2025.
About the Madison Poet Laureate
Steven Espada Dawson is currently serving as the Madison Poet Laureate. He is from East Los Angeles. The son of a Mexican immigrant, he is a former Ruth Lilly Fellow and Wisconsin Institute for Creative Writing Fellow.
He has served as a poetry editor for Copper Nickel and Sycamore Review and has taught creative writing at universities, libraries, and prisons across the country. His poems appear in many journals and have been anthologized in Best New Poets, Pushcart Prize, and Sarabande’s Another Last Call.
About the National Youth Poet Laureate Program
The National Youth Poet Laureate Program works with local arts organizations across the United States to elevate youth voices that are committed to artistic excellence, civic engagement, and social impact.
The National Youth Poet Laureate Program is supported by the Academy of American Poets, the Poetry Society of America, the Library of Congress, the National Endowment for the Arts, the National Parks Service, and many more organizations. It is an initiative of Urban Word NYC, Inc., an award-winning youth literary arts and youth development organization.
About the Madison Arts Commission
The Madison Arts Commission (MAC) is an 11-member citizen commission appointed by the Mayor to advise the City about matters of arts and culture. MAC’s mission is to foster arts appreciation by initiating partnerships, developing new audiences, and sponsoring diverse artistic activities by emerging and established artists and arts organizations while preserving Madison’s rich artistic tradition. To support a full creative life for all, the Madison Arts Commission commits to championing policies and practices of cultural equity that empower a just, inclusive, and equitable city.
To receive the latest news from Madison Arts, you can sign up for e-mail updates on the City’s e-mail lists page by entering your e-mail address and checking the box next to “Madison Arts Updates” under the Department of Planning & Community & Economic Development (DPCED) section.
