Sacramento Poet Laureate Andru Defeye is inviting all Sacramentans to celebrate Sacramento Poetry Day on Thursday, Oct. 26, with free classroom curriculum and cash-prize contests.
Mayor Anne Rudin declared Oct. 26 Sacramento Poetry Day in 1986. The day was reintroduced in 2022 by Defeye with support from the American Academy of Poets.
“See poetry come to life like never before in the Sacramento community as we gear up for a day of activities celebrating this special art form,” Defeye said.
To continue exposing people to the power of poetry and storytelling, Defeye has teamed up with the Sacramento Library, the Sacramento Poetry Center, Sol Collective and “some of the most influential creatives in the city,” to celebrate the day, he said.
The celebration features unique opportunities for youth and adults to engage in poetry:
Free locally sourced curriculum is available that can be used all year around for grades K-12. The curriculum meets core education standards in every grade for not only poetry but language and comprehension. Each lesson plan can be custom crafted to the class learning level and provides hands-on poetry experiences with voices from poets who come from Sacramento.
Youth and adults in Sacramento are invited to enter their poetry into a cash-prize contest. Winners will be drawn and announced on Oct. 26. All work must be original and composed by the person entering. The gala event is currently at full capacity.
About the Sacramento Poet Laureate
The Sacramento Poet Laureate Program was established in 2000 and is designed to extend and bring to life the power of poetry and the spoken word to the Sacramento community. Defeye has served as the Sacramento poet laureate since 2020.