Curtis L. Crisler, Indiana poet laureate, to speak on campus Feb. 5
Indiana Poet Laureate Curtis L. Crisler will deliver a Black History Month address on Hanover’s campus Wednesday, Feb. 5, at 7:30 p.m. in the Duggan Library. The appearance, open to the public free of charge, is part of Indiana Humanities’ Indiana Authors Awards Speaker Program.
An award-winning poet and young-adult author, Crisler serves as professor of creative writing at Purdue University Fort Wayne. He was named Indiana’s eighth official poet laureate in January 2024.
Crisler’s “Doing Drive-Bys on How to Love in the Midwest” earned the 2022 C&R Press Award for poetry. His poetry books also include “THe GReY aLBuM [PoeMS],” “Don’t Moan So Much (Stevie): A Poetry Musiquarium,” “Pulling Scabs” and “’This’ Ameri-can-ah.” Among his numerous chapbooks are “Black Achilles,” “Soundtrack to Latchkey Boy” and “Spill,” which earned the 2008 Keyhole Chapbook Award. “Black Achilles,” “Tough Boy Sonatas” and “’This’ Ameri-can-ah” were each nominated for an Eric Hoffer Award.
In addition to his books, Crisler’s writings have appeared in African American Review, The Amistad, Crab Orchard Review, The Drunken Boat, The Ninth Letter, and Reverie. He has also served as a contributing poetry editor at Aquarius Press and poetry editor at Human Equity through Art.
Crisler holds residencies at the City of Asylum/ Pittsburgh (COA/P), Virginia Center for the Creative Arts and Soul Mountain Retreat. He is a guest resident at Hamline University and Words on the Go Indianapolis, and a fellow at Cave Canem.
A native of Gary, Ind., Crisler earned a bachelor’s degree in English at Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne and a Master of Fine Arts at Southern Illinois University Carbondale.
Founded in 1972, Indiana Humanities connects people, opens minds and enriches lives by creating and facilitating programs that encourage Hoosiers to think, read and talk. The non-profit entity is funded, in part, by the National Endowment for the Humanities and Lilly Endowment Inc.
Indiana Humanities’ Indiana Authors Awards celebrate books written in Indiana by Hoosier authors. The Eugene and Marilyn Glick Indiana Authors Awards annually highlight the best works of Indiana writers in multiple categories, as well as literary debuts and lifetime achievement.
