Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships
The Poetry Foundation awards five Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships annually. Among the largest awards offered to young poets in the US, the $27,000 prize is intended to support exceptional US poets between 21 and 31 years of age.
The fellowships were established in 1989 by the Indianapolis philanthropist Ruth Lilly and expanded in 2013 with a gift from the Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Memorial Fund.
Eligibility
- Applicants need to be between the ages of 21 and 31 in 2025. If you are turning 21 or are 31 at any time in 2025 you are eligible to apply.
- Applicants must be US citizens or currently reside in the US.
- Applicants should be able to demonstrate a clear commitment to poetry.
- One of the Poetry Foundation’s priorities when selecting the 2025 Fellows is to support poets who have not had substantial institutional support in their careers thus far.
How to Apply
- All applicants will need to register and apply through the Poetry Foundation’s Grants and Awards Online Portal. To access the portal, applicants must submit an initial registration form. Registrations will be approved within 3-5 business days.
- If you registered for an account in 2022 or 2023, please do not register again. Your username is your email address and you can request a new password.
- After your registration is approved, applicants will be required to upload 10 pages of poetry as a single PDF and answer questions regarding their creative practices.
- The Poetry Foundation offers alternative application formats (e.g., audio format, video format, and interview with transcription). Please contact [email protected] or call 312-799-8072 by February 14, 2025 to arrange a method of submitting the application that best meets your accessibility needs.
Application Timeline
- January 15 - Applications open
- February 5, 1:00-2:00PM (CST) - Virtual information session (see details below)
- February 14 – Deadline to request alternative application formats
- February 24 – Cut off to submit application portal registration for first time applicants
- March 3, 5:00PM (CST) – Deadline to submit application
- All applicants will be notified by mid-June 2025
Information Session
Register for our virtual information session on Wednesday, February 5, 2025 from 1:00-2:00PM (CST) where we will discuss the application process and answer questions you have about the fellowship. ASL interpretation and CART captioning will be provided. If you have any questions or accessibility needs, please contact [email protected].
2024 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
Chandanie Somwaru (she/her) is an Indo-Caribbean woman born and raised in Queens, New York. She is the author of Urgent \\ Where the Mind Goes \\ Scattered…
Hermelinda Hernandez Monjaras was born in Oaxaca, Mexico, and identifies as both an indígena and an undocumented poet of Zapotecan descent. Her work has…
marion eames white (they/them) is a Black, trans poet from New York. They are the winner of a 2024 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Fellowship…
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Rob Macaisa Colgate (he/she/they) is a disabled, bakla poet and playwright. Colgate is the author of the poetry collection Hardly Creatures (Tin House…
2023 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
2023Bhion AchimbaBhion Achimba (they/he) grew up in rural southeastern Nigeria and came to the US as a Scholar-at-Risk fellow at Harvard University. Their manuscript Cantos…
2023Roda AvelarRoda Avelar (she/they) is a trans woman poet from Fresno, California. She earned an MFA in creative writing from the University of California Riverside…
2023Ariana BensonAriana Benson (she/they) is a southern Black poet born in Norfolk, Virginia. Their debut collection, Black Pastoral (University of Georgia Press, 2023…
2023ChrysanthemumChrysanthemum (she/her) is a poet, a performance artist, and a public historian. She is the winner of a 2023 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg …
2023Willie Lee Kinard IIIPoet, designer, and musician Willie Lee Kinard III (he/they) earned a BFA from the University of South Carolina and an MFA from the University of Pittsburgh…
2022 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
2022Tarik DobbsTarik Dobbs is a writer, an artist, and a 2022 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellow. Their poems appear in the Best New Poets and Best…
2022Diamond FordeDiamond Forde's debut collection, Mother Body, won the 2019 Saturnalia Books Poetry Prize. Her awards and prizes include the Pink Poetry Prize, the Furious…
2022Tariq LuthunPoet and community organizer Tariq Luthun was born in Detroit, Michigan, and raised in nearby Dearborn. His first collection of poetry, How the Water …
2022Troy OsakiTroy Osaki is a Filipino Japanese poet, organizer, and attorney from Seattle, Washington. He won a Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry fellowship…
2022Alan Pelaez LopezDr. Alan Pelaez Lopez is an Afro-Indigenous poet; an installation and adornment artist from Oaxaca, México; and a 2022 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent …
2021 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
2021Bryan ByrdlongBryan Byrdlong grew up in Chicago. He earned a BA from Vanderbilt University and an MFA in creative writing from University of Michigan. His poetry has…
2021Steven Espada DawsonSteven Espada Dawson grew up in Los Angeles. He earned a BA from University of Colorado Denver and an MFA in creative writing from Purdue University. …
2021Noor HindiNoor Hindi is a Palestinian-American poet and reporter. Her poems have appeared or are forthcoming in Poetry magazine, Hobart, and Jubilat. Her essays…
2021Natasha RaoNatasha Rao is the author of Latitude (September 2021), selected by Ada Limón as winner of the 2021 American Poetry Review/Honickman First Book Prize.…
2021Simon ShiehSimon Shieh is a Taiwanese American poet, an essayist, and an educator. He is the author of Master (Sarabande Books, 2023), winner of the 2022 Kathryn…
2020 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
2020Isabella BorgesonIsabella “Isa” Borgeson (she/they) is a queer, mixed race, white and Filipina poet, community organizer, and educator from Oakland, California. She was…
2020Luther HughesLuther Hughes (they/them) is the author of A Shiver in the Leaves (BOA Editions, 2022) and the chapbook Touched (Sibling Rivalry Press, 2018). They are…
2020Cyrée Jarelle JohnsonCyrée Jarelle Johnson (he/they) is the author of SLINGSHOT (Nightboat Books, 2019), winner of the Lambda Literary Award for Gay Poetry. He earned a BA…
2020Darius SimpsonDarius Simpson is a writer, educator, performer, and disruptor from Akron, Ohio. His first poetry collection is Conversion Theory (2018). He earned his…
2020Khaty XiongKhaty Xiong is the author of the poetry collection Poor Anima (Apogee Press, 2015) and the chapbooks Ode to the Far Shore (2016), Deer Hour (2014), and…
2019 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
2019Franny ChoiFranny Choi is the author of the poetry collections Soft Science (Alice James, 2019) and Floating, Brilliant, Gone (Write Bloody Publishing, 2014), as…
2019Jane HuffmanJane Huffman grew up outside of Detroit, Michigan. She earned a BA from Kalamazoo College and an MFA in poetry from the University of Iowa Writers' Workshop…
2019José OlivarezJosé Olivarez is the son of Mexican immigrants, the author of Citizen Illegal (2018), the co-author of Home Court (2014), and the co-host of the poetry…
2019Justin Phillip ReedPoet and essayist Justin Phillip Reed was born and raised in South Carolina. He earned his BA from Tusculum College and an MFA from Washington University…
2019Michael WassonMichael Wasson is the author of the forthcoming collection Swallowed Light, as well as This American Ghost (YesYes Books, 2017). He earned a BA from Lewis…
2018 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
2018Safia ElhilloSafia Elhillo is Sudanese by way of Washington, DC. She is the author of The January Children (University of Nebraska Press, 2017), winner of the Sillerman…
2018Hieu Minh NguyenHieu Minh Nguyen is a queer Vietnamese American poet and performer based in Minneapolis. He is the author of the poetry collections Not Here (Coffee House…
2018sam saxSam sax is the author of the poetry collections PIG (Scribner, 2023); bury it (Wesleyan University Press, 2018), winner of the James Laughlin Award; madness…
2018Natalie Scenters-ZapicoNatalie Scenters-Zapico is the author of Lima :: Limón (Copper Canyon Press, 2019) and The Verging Cities (Center for Literary Publishing, 2015). She …
2018Paul TranPaul Tran earned a BA from Brown University and an MFA in poetry from Washington University. Their work appears in the New Yorker, Poetry magazine, and…
2017 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
2017Fatimah AsgharPoet, screenwriter, educator, and performer Fatimah Asghar is a South-Asian American Muslim writer. Asghar is the author of the poetry collection If They…
2017Sumita ChakrabortySumita Chakraborty is a poet, essayist, and scholar. Her debut collection of poetry is Arrow (Alice James Books and Carcanet Press, forthcoming September…
2017Cortney Lamar CharlestonCortney Lamar Charleston is a Cave Canem fellow from the Chicago suburbs. His debut collection, Telepathologies, won the 2016 Saturnalia Books Poetry …
2017Roy G. GuzmánRoy G. Guzmán was born in Honduras and raised in Miami. Their work has been featured in Kenyon Review, Verse of April, and The Best American Poetry blog…
2017Emily Jungmin YoonEmily Jungmin Yoon is the author of Ordinary Misfortunes (Tupelo Press, 2017), winner of the Sunken Garden Chapbook Prize, selected by Maggie Smith. Her…
2016 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
2016Kaveh AkbarKaveh Akbar is the author of Pilgrim Bell (Graywolf Press, 2021) and Calling a Wolf a Wolf (Alice James Books, 2017; Penguin UK, 2018). He is also the…
2016Jos CharlesTrans poet, writer, translator, and intertextual artist jos charles is the author of the poetry collections Safe Space (Ahsahta Press, 2016) and feeld…
2016Angel NafisAngel Nafis is the author of BlackGirl Mansion (Red Beard Press/ New School Poetics, 2012). She earned her BA at Hunter College and is an MFA candidate…
2016Alison C. RollinsAlison C. Rollins was born and raised in St. Louis, Missouri. She is the author of Black Bell (Copper Canyon Press, 2024) and Library of Small Catastrophes…
2016Javier ZamoraPoet Javier Zamora was born in the small El Salvadoran coastal fishing town of La Herradura and immigrated to the United States at the age of nine, joining…
2015 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
2015Nate MarshallNate Marshall is from the South Side of Chicago. His first book, Wild Hundreds (University of Pittsburgh Press, 2015), won the Agnes Lynch Starrett Prize…
2015Erika L. SánchezErika L. Sánchez is a CantoMundo fellow and winner of the 2013 “Discovery”/Boston Review Prize. Her books include Crying in the Bathroom (Penguin, 2022…
2015Danniel SchoonebeekDanniel Schoonebeek’s first book of poems, American Barricade (YesYes Books, 2014), was named one of the year’s ten standout debuts by Poets & Writers…
2015Safiya SinclairSafiya Sinclair was born and raised in Montego Bay, Jamaica. Her first full-length collection, Cannibal (University of Nebraska Press, 2016), won a Whiting…
2015Jamila WoodsCalled “a modern-day Renaissance woman” by the Chicago Sun-Times, Jamila Woods is a poet, singer, and teaching artist. She is a Pushcart Prize nominee…
2014 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
2014Hannah GambleHannah Gamble (they/them) is the author of Your Invitation to a Modest Breakfast (Fence Books, 2012), selected by Bernadette Mayer for the 2011 National…
2014Solmaz SharifBorn in Istanbul, Turkey, to Iranian parents, Solmaz Sharif earned degrees from the University of California, Berkeley, where she studied and taught with…
2014Danez SmithDanez Smith was born St. Paul, Minnesota. They are the author of Don't Call Us Dead (2017), a finalist for the National Book Award; [insert] Boy (2014…
2014Ocean VuongBorn in Saigon, poet and editor Ocean Vuong was raised in Hartford, Connecticut, and earned a BA at Brooklyn College (CUNY). In his poems, he often explores…
2014Wendy XuBorn in Shandong, China, poet Wendy Xu was raised in New York and Iowa. She earned a BA from the University of Iowa and MFA from the University of Massachusetts…
2013 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
2013Harmony HolidayBorn in Waterloo, Iowa, poet and choreographer Harmony Holiday is the daughter of Northern Soul singer/songwriter Jimmy Holiday. Her father died when …
2013Matthew NienowMatthew Nienow was born in Los Angeles and spent most of his youth in Seattle. He earned an MFA from the University of Washington and a degree in Traditional…
2013Hannah Sanghee ParkHannah Sanghee Park was born in Tacoma, Washington. She earned a BA from the University of Washington, an MFA from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, and an …
2013Natalie ShaperoNatalie Shapero was born in Chester, Pennsylvania and earned a BA in Writing Seminars from the Johns Hopkins University, an MFA in Poetry from the Ohio…
2013Phillip B. WilliamsPhillip B. Williams was born in Chicago, Illinois and earned an MFA from Washington University, where he was a Chancellor’s Graduate fellow. He is the…
2012 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
2012Reginald Dwayne BettsReginald Dwayne Betts is the author of a memoir and three books of poetry. His memoir, A Question of Freedom: A Memoir of Learning, Survival, and Coming…
2012Nicholas FriedmanNicholas Friedman is the author of Petty Theft, winner of the New Criterion Poetry Prize. In a comment on this “brilliant, beautifully crafted first book…
2012Richie HofmannRichie Hofmann is a graduate of the University Professors Program at Boston University and earned an MFA from the Johns Hopkins University and PhD from…
2012Rickey LaurentiisRickey Laurentiis grew up in New Orleans and earned an MFA from Washington University in St. Louis. They are the author of Boy with Thorn, selected by…
2012Jacob SaenzPoet and editor Jacob Saenz was born in Chicago and raised in Cicero, Illinois. He earned a BA in creative writing from Columbia College in Chicago. His…
2011 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
2011Olivia ClareOlivia Clare was born in New York in 1982 and raised in Louisiana. She earned a BA in English from University of California, Berkeley, an MFA from the…
2011T. Zachary CotlerTheodore Zachary Cotler was born in Passaic, New Jersey, in 1981 and raised in Marin County, California. Cotler earned a BA in English from Cornell University…
2011Farnoosh FathiFarnoosh Fathi was born in 1981. Raised in California, she attended UCLA, NYU, and the University of Houston, where she earned her PhD in creative writing…
2011Allison SeayAllison Seay was born in Richmond, Virginia, in 1980. She earned a BA in English at Mary Washington College (now University of Mary Washington) in Fredericksbur…
2011Marcus WickerMarcus Wicker was born in Ann Arbor, Michigan. He is the author of Silencer (2017), which won the Society of Midland Authors Award, as well as the Arnold…
2010 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
2010Brooklyn CopelandBrooklyn Copeland was born in Indianapolis, Indiana. She is the author of the full-length poetry collection Siphon, Harbor (2012), as well as numerous…
2010Miriam Bird GreenbergMiriam Bird Greenberg was born in 1980 and grew up in rural Texas. Her limited-edition letterpress chapbook The Other World (2019), is available from …
2010Nate KlugNate Klug was born in Minnesota, grew up in Wellesley, Massachusetts, and earned a BA in English at the University of Chicago and a Masters from Yale …
2010Dora MalechDora Malech grew up in Maryland and earned a BA in Fine Arts from Yale University and an MFA in Poetry from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop. Her awards include…
2010Christopher ShannonChristopher Shannon was born in Beech Grove, Indiana in 1981. He is a graduate of Northwestern University, where he received a BA in English and Creative…
2009 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
2009Malachi BlackMalachi Black is the author of Storm Toward Morning (Copper Canyon Press, 2014) and two limited edition chapbooks: Quarantine (2012) and Echolocation …
2009Eric EkstrandEric Ekstrand lives in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, with his husband, Danny, and his father, Ken. He teaches writing at Wake Forest University. He is…
2009Chloe HonumChloe Honum grew up in Auckland, New Zealand. She earned a BA from Sarah Lawrence College, an MFA from the University of Arkansas, and a PhD from Texas…
2009Jeffrey SchultzJeffrey Schultz lives in Los Angeles and teaches at Pepperdine University. He received the 2009 “Discovery” / Boston Review prize.
2009Joseph SpeceJoseph Spece received BA degrees in English and philosophy from Boston College in 2005 and an MFA from Columbia University in 2009.
2008 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
2008Nicky BeerNicky Beer (she/her) is a bi/queer writer and the author of Real Phonies and Genuine Fakes (Milkweed, 2022), winner of the 2023 Lambda Literary Award …
2008Roger ReevesRoger Reeves (he/him) is the author of Best Barbarian (W.W. Norton & Company, 2022), a finalist for the National Book Award and winner of the Kingsley…
2008Michael RutherglenOriginally from Charlottesville, Virginia, Michael Rutherglen is the recipient of a 2012–2013 Amy Clampitt fellowship and a 2008 Ruth Lilly Fellowship…- 2008Alison Stine
Alison Stine is the author of five books, including three books of poems: Wait (University of Wisconsin Press, 2011), winner of the Brittingham Prize;…
- 2008Caki WilkinsonCaki Wilkinson's poems have appeared in the Atlantic Monthly, Black Warrior Review, Southwest Review, and elsewhere, She is a PhD candidate at the University…
2007 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
- 2007Sean BishopSean Bishop earned his MFA from the University of Houston, where he was the managing editor of Gulf Coast. His first collection of poetry, The Night We…
2007Megan GrumblingMegan Grumbling received the 2004 Robert Frost Award. Appearing in this issue are poems from Booker’s Point, her book-length portrait of a quintessential…
2006 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
- 2006Colin Cheney
Colin Cheney is the recipient of a 2006 Ruth Lilly Fellowship from the Poetry Foundation. His poems have appeared in American Poetry Review, Crazyhorse…
2005 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
- 2005Michael McGriffMichael McGriff was born and raised in Coos Bay, Oregon. He earned his BA at the University of Oregon and his MFA from the University of Texas at Austin…
2005Miller ObermanMiller Oberman is the author of The Unstill Ones (Princeton University Press, 2017). He lives with his family in Queens, New York.
2004 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
- 2004Emily MooreEmily Moore is a graduate of Phillips Academy and Princeton University. Her poems have been published in The Best American Poetry blog, Ploughshares, …
2003 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
2003Katherine LarsonKatherine Larson is the author of Radial Symmetry (2011), selected by Louise Glück as the winner of the Yale Series of Younger Poets. She holds degrees…
2003Kathleen RooneyKathleen Rooney is a founding editor of Rose Metal Press, a publisher of literary work in hybrid genres, and a founding member of Poems While You Wait…
2002 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
2002Emily RoskoEmily Rosko earned her BA from Purdue University, her MFA from Cornell University, and her PhD from the University of Missouri-Columbia. Her collections…
2001 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
2001Ilya KaminskyPoet Ilya Kaminsky was born in the former Soviet Union city of Odessa. He lost most of his hearing at the age of four after a doctor misdiagnosed mumps…
2001Alissa Leigh
2000 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
2000Wayne MillerWayne Miller was born in Cincinnati and earned his BA from Oberlin College and his MFA from the University of Houston. His books of poetry include the…
2000Christina PughChristina Pugh is a poet and critic. Her fifth book of poems, Stardust Media, was awarded the Juniper Prize for Poetry (University of Massachusetts Press…
1998 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
1998 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
- 1998Christine StewartBorn and raised in Maryland, poet and fiction writer Christine Stewart earned a BA at Goucher College, an MA at Hollins University, and an MFA at the …
1997 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
1997Morri CreechBorn in Moncks Corner, South Carolina, poet Morri Creech earned a BA at Winthrop University and an MA and MFA at McNeese State University. His formal …
1997Delisa MulkeyDelisa Mulkey was born and raised in Georgia and earned her PhD from Georgia State University. She is the author of the chapbook Peacock by Moonlight …
1996 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
1995 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
- 1995Matt Douglas CollinsworthMatt Douglas Collinsworth earned his BA from Georgetown College and his MFA from Ohio State University. He received the 1995 Ruth Lilly Fellowship, and…
1994 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
1994Christian WimanPoet, translator, editor, and essayist Christian Wiman was raised in West Texas and earned a BA at Washington and Lee University. A former Guggenheim …
1993 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
- 1993Davis McCombs
Davis McCombs was raised in Hart County, Kentucky. He earned a BA from Harvard University and an MFA from the University of Virginia. His collections …
1992 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
1992James KimbrellBorn in Jackson, Mississippi, James Kimbrell received an MFA in creative writing from the University of Virginia and a PhD from the University of Missouri…
1991 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
1991Greg SellersGreg Sellers attended Louisiana State University and earned his MFA at Arizona State University and his MLIS from the University of Alabama. The recipient…
1990 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
1990Catherine WagnerCatherine Wagner’s collections of poems include Nervous Device (2012), My New Job (2009), Macular Hole (2004), Miss America (2001); and a dozen chapbooks…
1989 Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowships RECIPIENT
1989Saskia HamiltonBorn in Washington, DC, poet and editor Saskia Hamilton earned a BA at Kenyon College, an MA at New York University, and a PhD from Boston University.…