The Minneapolis Arts and Cultural Affairs Department and the Loft Literary Center are partnering to choose Minneapolis’ 2025-2026 Poet Laureate.
Whoever is chosen will become the second Poet Laureate in Minneapolis history and create poetry mirroring the city’s political, environmental or cultural climate.
The Director of the City of Minneapolis’ Arts and Culture Affairs Department Ben Johnson said having a Poet Laureate is common throughout the U.S. and was important for Minneapolis to have one.
“We are a city that has such a thriving literary community, but it just becomes symbolic about who we are, and people in all different sectors, music, dance, theater, film and visual art, literary art, graphic design, architecture, and so forth,” Johnson said.
Johnson said efforts to create a Minneapolis Poet Laureate had been in the works for a while but the city needed a department to back it up. The Minneapolis Arts and Culture Affairs Department started in 2023 and Minneapolis’ first Poet Laureate was selected later that same year.
“That’s kind of embarrassing that the city hasn’t had one for 50 years because we’re Minneapolis,” Johnson said. “We’re such an arts-based state and arts are so foundational to the value system of Minneapolis and Minnesota but here we are. We make up for lost time.”
The Poet Laureate’s job consists of writing a poem reflecting the current state of Minneapolis, engaging with the community, advancing the art form of poetry as an avenue for deep engagement, teaching two classes and leading a public event featuring the sharing of poetry, said Arleta Little, the executive and artistic director of the Loft Literary Center.
“The Minneapolis Poet Laureate is so important because poets remind us of who we are and why we’re here and in the best cases call forward our best, both individually and collectively,” Little said.
Johnson said the current Poet Laureate, Heid E. Erdrich, is Ojibwe and lots of her work is centered around the Indigenous community.
Erdrich’s poem is called “A Love Letter to Minneapolis” and is broken down into four parts, reflecting the four seasons. The final part of her poem will be delivered in December at the Minneapolis American Indian Center.
Erdrich said that although the position is a lot of work, it is rewarding.
“Being a Poet Laureate creates a chance for the poet to focus on community efforts and contribute to the poet economy of the city,” Erdrich said.
While Erdrich will only serve a one-year term, the next Poet Laureate will be given a two-year term to make things feel less rushed, Erdrich added.
The position comes with a stipend and the ability to apply for the prestigious Academy of American Poet Laureate Fellowship Program, a $50,000 award given to honor poets of literary merit, Johnson said.
“There’s a lot of writers, faculty, grad students, masters, all these people (at the University of Minnesota) who are in these programs and your work gets looked at by some of the most important people,” Johnson said. “So there’s a reason to apply.”
Anyone is welcome to apply, Johnson said.
Those interested in applying to be Minneapolis’ next Poet Laureate must be an experienced poet, 21 years old or older and a Hennepin County resident for at least a year. The application deadline is Nov. 15.
