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April is National Poetry Month and thousands of businesses, nonprofit organizations and artists will celebrate it with readings, festivals, workshops and other events that bring the community together around the power of poetry and its central place in our culture.  Publishers, booksellers, libraries, schools, arts groups, musicians and poets everywhere will help us recognize our rich literary past and the diversity of today's literary artists.

Poetry is one of the oldest modes of human expression and words have great power to move and mold people of all ages. Whether in the classroom or the community, reciting, reading or writing poetry can bridge cultural gaps, commemorate significant events and communicate important ideas. It is among the fastest rising forms of popular expression among our youth because it speaks from the heart.  Poetry challenges us to examine language, perception and meaning and fosters appreciation for self-expression, creativity and imagination.  Of the many studies on the value of poetry, one conducted by the California Poets in the Schools found that students who received poetry education showed greater proficiency in: 

• vocabulary 
• critical analysis
• reading comprehension
• public speaking
• self expression

New Jersey, with its deep poetic legacy from the likes of Walt Whitman, Stephen Crane, William Carlos Williams and Alan Ginsberg, is home to scores of nationally and internationally acclaimed poets whose timeless works inspire us always.  In this issue of e-News I'd like to highlight for you some of the many ways the State Arts Council supports poetry in our schools and communities and celebrates National Poetry Month.

Carol Ann Herbert
Chair, NJ State Council on the Arts

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Arts Council Grantees Help Poetry Thrive

For more than 25 years the Poetry Center at the Passaic County Community College in Paterson has served its diverse and growing community with high quality, professional poetry writing workshops, meet-the-author sessions, poetry performances and annual competitions. These events give aspiring poets rare opportunities for professional growth and help the public participate in the creative process and learn new ways to express themselves increasing both cultural awareness and pride.

In Camden County the Cultural and Heritage Commission launched a new program called Poetry in the Park. These free readings will run through the spring in Cooper River Park and are open to emerging high school and college-aged poets and spoken word artists a new and rapidly rising genre among teens and young adults.

Spoken word artists are also featured in Asbury Park during the Month of Spoken Word Performances. Supported by the Monmouth County Arts Council, the program encourages participants to come "tell your story" at events such as Words Around the World: Multi-Lingual, Multi-Cultural Poetry.

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Poetry Helps Students Learn

Poetry education is an effective way to help students develop the critical skills of reading, writing and public speaking. We also know that poetry is a forceful and positive emotional outlet for youth who often struggle with self-expression. The New Jersey Writers Project (NJWP), cosponsored by the Council and Playwrights Theatre of New Jersey, offers in-school residencies that match schools with professional poets. Reaching nearly 17,000 students annually in all 21 counties, NJWP introduces students of all ages and backgrounds to the possibilities inherent in thinking and communicating creatively through language and it helps teachers as well integrate poetry into their English curriculum.

"I feel now that I can speak about something that is going on in my life through poetry.  Also that poems can be interpreted in so many different ways. Poetry is   fun; it's cool to learn.  It speaks volumes about a person." New Jersey Writers Project student from Absegami High School in Galloway

A new program that has taken off like wildfire all across the country is called Poetry Out Loud (POL), a program of poetry recitation contests sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation.  This year the State Arts Council, Playwrights Theatre of NJ, the NJ Theatre Alliance, Discover Jersey Arts and the New Jersey Network Foundation (NJN) cosponsored New Jersey POL program. Over 3000 high school students from 34 different schools  participated in poetry recitation contests in their classrooms, then at 3 regional competitions and then at the state finals conducted at New Jersey Network Studios in Trenton on March 22.  POL invites the dynamic aspects of slam poetry, spoken word and theatre into the English class helping students master presentation skills, build self-confidence and learn about their literary heritage. The state champion, Naja Selby from Newark Arts High School, received monetary prizes as well as an all expense paid trip to Washington, DC to compete in the National Finals for a $20,000 college scholarship and other prizes provided by the generosity of the National Endowment for the Arts, the Poetry Foundation and Southwest Airlines.

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Poets Contribute All year Long

The State Arts Council also helps New Jersey's poets to thrive. By offering Fellowships, many of New Jersey's most talented poets gain the means to write,   teach grow creatively, and maximize their contributions to our communities. For example, Fellowship recipient Emari DiGiorgio of Mays Landing teaches a monthly creative writing workshop at the Atlantic County Branch of Gilda's Club, a resource center for people whose lives have been touched by cancer. The men, women and children who attend the workshop "have written incredible poems that reflect their growth and healing, as well as their loss and hope" said DiGiorgio.

Finally New Jersey is also home to the largest poetry festival in North America, the Geraldine R. Dodge Poetry Festival, held every other year. The September 2006 Festival attracted over18,000 people from all over the country and featured an impressive roster of "Festival Poets", including former United States Poets Laureate and State Arts Council Fellowship recipients Peter Murphy, Barry Seiler and Diane Lockward. To hear readings by a current Arts Council Fellowship recipient log on to the Princeton Public Library's Poetry Podcast Blog where Winnifred Hughes is one of the featured poets in their National Poetry Month program.

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