PHILADELPHIA – Mayor Jim Kenney today announced the appointment of the City of Philadelphia’s third Poet Laureate, Yolanda Wisher. The position of Poet Laureate was established in January 2012 as an active, civic position that will see Wisher engaging with Philadelphians through public events and community service activities, along with providing mentorship to the city’s Youth Poet Laureate.
“I’m pleased to continue the City’s commitment to bringing poetry and art to the residents of Philadelphia,” said Mayor Kenney. “The Poet Laureate is an invaluable asset to our city. Ms. Wisher will go into our schools and neighborhoods, and provide our citizens with access to an arts education and a form of expression they might not have otherwise experienced. I’m grateful for her work and the work of her two predecessors.”
“It is a breathtaking honor to be selected to serve as our city’s Poet Laureate, following in the footsteps of Sonia Sanchez and Frank Sherlock,” Wisher said about her appointment. “I’m proud that my city has a post that affirms poetry as a vehicle for civic engagement and expression. Born in Philly, I returned sixteen years ago in search of a poetry community. I found it, and it has shaped and inspired me.”
Yolanda Wisher is a multidisciplinary poet and educator. A Founding Cultural Agent and the Rhapsodist of Wherewithal for the U.S. Department of Arts and Culture, she also served as the Director of Art Education for the City of Philadelphia Mural Arts Program from 2010 to 2015. Previously, Wisher worked as an English teacher at Germantown Friends School, where she founded and directed the Germantown Poetry Festival (2006-2010).
Wisher’ poetry has earned her many accolades. Wisher is a Pew Fellow (2015), Leeway Art & Change Grantee (2008), Cave Canem Fellow (1999-2000), and the first Montgomery County Pennsylvania Poet Laureate (1999). Her work has been featured in Fence, GOOD Magazine, Harriet: The Blog, MELUS, Ploughshares, The Sun Ra Mixtape Vol. 1, and in the anthologies Gathering Ground, Gravyland, Lavanderia, Stand Our Ground, and The Ringing Ear.Wisher is also the author of Monk Eats an Afro and the co-editor of Peace is a Haiku Song.
Born in Philadelphia and raised in North Wales, Pennsylvania, Wisher was a three-sport athlete, who earned a basketball scholarship to attend Lafayette College, where she received a B.A. in English/Black Studies. Wisher later earned her M.A. in English/Creative Writing-Poetry from Temple University. Wisher lives in Philadelphia with her partner and double bassist, Mark Palacio, and their son, Thelonious.
“The diversity and breadth of poets in our city is undeniable and continues to grow,” said Chief Cultural Officer Kelly Lee. “Yolanda Wisher’s selection as the City of Philadelphia’s Poet Laureate is a testament to work that she has done in bringing poetry to her fellow Philadelphians. The Office of Arts and Culture looks forward to working with Yolanda in developing and creating initiatives that will utilize poetry to increase access to the arts and education to encourage the public to embrace poetry as a means of expression.”
Mayor Kenney also recognized today the service of the outgoing Poet Laureate Frank Sherlock, who has served in that capacity from January 2014 to December 2015. During his tenure as Poet Laureate, Sherlock launched Write Your Block, a project that provided Philadelphians an opportunity to explore their communities through poetry. Sherlock worked with Philadelphians throughout the city including with teaching artists through the Bartol Stockton Rush Foundation and 6-week workshops for students at Mighty Writers West in Mantua, and Taller Puertorriqueño in Kensington.
The City of Philadelphia’s first Poet Laureate and Poet Laureate Emeritus was Sonia Sanchez, whose accomplishments as Poet Laureate included her continued work as an advocate for peace, highlighted by the Peace is a Haiku Song interactive public art project in partnership with First Person Arts and the City of Philadelphia Mural Arts Program, and the completion and dedication of the Peace is a Haiku Song mural at Broad and Christian Streets.
The Poet Laureate Governing Committee played a vital role in review of the nominations for the position of City of Philadelphia’s Poet Laureate.
The members of the Poet Laureate Governing Committee are:
- Beth Feldman Brandt, poet and Executive Director, the Stockton Rush Bartol Foundation;
- Dr. Cathy Cohen, Education Director, ArtWell;
- Al Filreis, Faculty Director, Kelly Writers House, the University of Pennsylvania;
- Trapeta Mayson, poet and Executive Director, Historic Germantown; and
- Autumn McClintock, poet and Office of Strategic Initiatives, the Free Library of Philadelphia.
- Alina Pleskova, Co-Editor, bedfellows magazine & Co-Host, Poetry Jawnspodcast.
- Frank Sherlock, Poet Laureate Emeritus
- Greg Corbin, Founder and Executive Director, Philadelphia Youth Poetry Movement
About The Office of Arts and Culture: The mission of the City of Philadelphia’s Office of Arts and Culture is to support and promote arts, culture and creative industries; and to develop partnerships and coordinate efforts that weave arts, culture and creativity into the economic and social fabric of the City.