The Academy of American Poets is pleased to announce that Paisley Rekdal, professor of English at the University of Utah and Poet Laureate of Utah, has been named an Academy of American Poets Laureate Fellow and will receive a $100,000 award in recognition of her literary merit and to support civic programs. Rekdal is one of 13 poets laureate nationwide to be honored.

This new award, made possible by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and announced by the New York Times, is in keeping with this spring’s national poetry programming theme of poetry and democracy offered by the Poetry Coalition. An alliance of more than 20 organizations, the Poetry Coalition promotes the value poets bring to culture and the important contribution poetry makes in the lives of people of all ages and backgrounds.

“Poets have an important role in our culture and in communities all across the country,” said Michael Jacobs, chairman of the Academy of American Poets. “By supporting Poets Laureate at the state and local level, we hope to ensure that more people become acquainted with poets and poetry where they live and have an opportunity to benefit from innovative and groundbreaking programming close to home.”

Read the full story here.