Bucks County Poet Laureate
About the Bucks County Poet Laureate Program
The Bucks County Poet Laureate Contest, the oldest such program in the Commonwealth, was started in 1977 by the Bucks County Council on the Arts. From the beginning, the County Commissioners presented the laureate with a Proclamation, and the laureate read a poem at the weekly (now bi-monthly) meeting. A reception and reading was held at the Rodman House at the County Complex on Rt. 611.
In 1986, when the Arts Council’s activities were about to be subsumed by the Michener Art Center, Bucks County Community College was asked to assume sponsorship for the County. Stan Heim, the 1980 Laureate and professor in the Dept. of Language & Literature, became the Laureate Program Director. Heim continued the traditions started by the Council and in 1988 began the Bucks County High School Poet of the Year Contest. After Heim’s retirement from the College in 2001, Dr. Christopher Bursk, 1978 Laureate and professor in the College’s Language & Literature Dept., became Interim Director of the Program, succeeded in 2002 by Prof. Robert Bense, who served as Director for two years. In 2004, Dr. Allen Hoey, 2001 Laureate and professor in the Dept. of Language & Literature, became the Program’s Director. In recent years, Dr. Christopher Bursk served as Co-Director of the Program, first with Dr. Charlie Groth and then with Dr. Ethel Rackin, who assumed the Directorship in 2019. Laureates and runners-up are now invited to read on the Bucks County Community College campus for a reading and reception to celebrate the vitality of poetry in the County.
A résumé of past Laureates reveals a multitude of backgrounds, many awards, publications, and professional achievements. Included in these are Guggenheims, NEA, and Pennsylvania Council on the Arts fellowships, Pennsylvania Professor of the Year, a Pew Foundation on the Arts grant, and more. The vision of the founding Council has been more than realized.
Bucks County Poet Laureate
How to Enter
The open competition begins each summer with submissions due in September and the new Poet Laureate named in the fall.
Current Poet Laureate
Tom Mallouk
Bucks County High School Poet of the Year
Ninth, tenth, eleventh, and twelfth-grade students who live in Bucks County and/or attend Bucks County high schools are eligible to compete for this honor, awarded each spring.
High School Poet of the Year Entry Form
Bucks County Poet Laureate Events and Publications
The current and former Bucks County Poet Laureates have recently formed an Advisory Council to promote poetry within the county. Watch this space for details of events and projects.
At the Edge: A Writing Workshop with Luray Gross
Thursday, March 2
4-5:30 p.m.
The Orangery
Newtown Campus
$15 per person | $10 for veterans, Bucks students, and senior citizens
Write prose or poetry exploring the "in between" spaces in our lives where lively ideas, emotions, images, and questions reside. Writers of all levels of experience are welcome. Teaching artist, writer, and storyteller Luray Gross is the author of four volumes of poetry, the latest being Lift from Ragged Sky Press.
To register or learn more about the workshop, email BCPLWorkshop@gmail.com.
Space is limited to 15 participants.
Dr. Allen Hoey Memorial Legacy Scholarship
Awarded to a BCCC student who specializes in the writing of fiction. Applicants must be enrolled at least part time (minimum of three (3) credits) and intend to return to BCCC in the following academic year after the award is made to enroll in a minimum of three credits. There is no minimum grade point average required. Learn more.