Alumni Summit: Incubator for Community-Engaged Poets

Summer 2020 marks the fifth anniversary of the Incubator for Community-Engaged Poets, a program created by the Poetry Foundation and Crescendo Literary. The coronavirus pandemic makes us unable to convene a new cohort of fellows safely, so instead we have planned an online alumni summit.

Ninety-eight fellows attended the Incubator since 2016. This year we invited them back for a three-week virtual program that addresses their needs today, taking into account the ways their careers and projects evolved after their participation. Alumni fellows this year are helping us give shape to the program and determining the themes to explore in faculty talks, workshops, and small group discussions.

The Incubator “was one of the first curated spaces, in the poetry community, where I truly felt like I earned my seat at the table,” said 2016 Incubator fellow Najee Omar. “It allowed me to be surrounded by brilliant poets who are equally as committed to the craft as they are to the heart of community—poets like me. The Incubator exposed me to the phenomenal work my peers are spearheading around the country, challenged me to think critically about the role I want to play in enacting change, provided me with access to essential tools and resources to work on my passion project, and gave me a space to contribute my expertise. The overwhelming support I received from Incubator fellows gave me the final push I needed to launch my very own arts education organization for youth in schools and non-traditional settings in New York. ... The Incubator is a one-of-a-kind, necessary experience for anyone who believes in the urgency of using the poem to transform space.”

We look forward to welcoming a new class of community-engaged poets to the incubator in Chicago next year. Please revisit this page in the spring for more information.

The Poetry Foundation, publisher of Poetry magazine, is an independent literary organization committed to a vigorous presence for poetry in our culture. It exists to discover and celebrate the best poetry and to place it before the largest possible audience.

Crescendo Literary, a collaboration between poets Eve L. Ewing and Nate Marshall, creates and curates events, works of art, and educational resources grounded in the belief that 1) artists can, should, and must be accountable to the communities from which they emerge, and 2) communities, in turn, are strengthened by the meaningful presence of excellent art.