LYNN — The city is planning to appoint its first-ever poet laureate at the beginning of January 2025.
The initiative was brought forward by City Councilor-at-Large and North Shore Juneteenth Association founder Nicole McClain. A committee, which will meet throughout the year, was then assembled to discuss the application process and work out the details of the poet laureate’s role.
The committee consists of Lynn Public Library Director Theresa Hurley, Lynn Public Art Commission Chair Joanna Cacciola, Lynn Cultural Council Chair Cristian Recinos, Lynn Cultural Council member Sunil Gulab, and North Shore Community College professor and former School Committee member Tiffany Magnolia.
“I wanted to create this position because with what I do with the North Shore Juneteenth Association, I’ve come across a lot of people who are spoken-word artists,” McClain said.
She added that someone she worked with for the association was bestowed with the honor in Medford. After seeing the programming he did encouraging children to understand the art of poetry and learn how to read and write, she thought it would be a great position to bring to Lynn.
LaCrecia Thomson, the arts and culture planner for the city, said the idea of bringing a poet laureate to Lynn “just makes sense” as a way to celebrate literary arts.
Thomson said the committee met for the first time last month and its members plan to bring rough drafts of an application to the next meeting.
She said the poet laureate’s role will be to organize programming throughout the district’s public schools and perform at public events. She added that whoever takes the position will also be responsible for planning initiatives that encourage reading, writing, and artistic expression.
Thomson said the committee discussed the possibility of the honor being compensated with a stipend or honorarium from the city.
“We want to make sure, like we do with all creatives, that they’re being paid for what they’re being asked to offer,” Thomson said.
She added that the committee will also take into consideration term limits, how long the term should be, and an appropriate work-to-pay ratio.
McClain said the committee is taking a lot of cues from other communities that have poet-laureate positions.
“While we understand that (the position) is an honor, we realize that it is also a lot of work,” she said.
Thomson said the committee’s goal is to have an application ready for October.
She said the committee does not have any particular idea of who should fill the role. However, she noted a lot of people have already expressed interest in applying.
Thomson added that the committee will not consider whether the poet has a published body of work.
“That’s exclusionary,” she said. “What we are going to ask for is someone with a demonstrated body of work, understanding that not everybody has the opportunity or the access or the means to work toward official publication.”
Thomson added that the committee also discussed a minimum age of 18 for the poet laureate, but said if the initial honor finds success, the committee’s members would be interested in creating a youth poet-laureate position.
