Brooklyn College Open Mic Continues Tradition of Poetic Excellence
May 23, 2014
Poetry All-Stars
Brooklyn College has a long tradition of attracting and producing award-winning poets. That impressive list includes artists like John Ashbery, who taught at Brooklyn College in the 1970s; Allen Ginsberg, who taught at the college from 1986 until his death in 1997; award-winning poet and author Sapphire '95 M.F.A.; Professor Julie Agoos, an acclaimed poet and winner of the Yale Younger Poets Prize; Associate Professor and Fulbright Scholar Ben Lerner, who teaches at the college and is a mentor to Pushcart Prize-winner Ocean Vuong '12, a graduate of the B.F.A. Creative Writing Program and the recipient of an unprecedented $40,000 scholarship from the Elizabeth George Foundation; and Gracie Leavitt '11, whose work, Monkeys, Minor Planet, Average Star, was recently published by Nightboat Books.
To hear the work of Brooklyn College's rising poetic stars, who participated in the biannual English Majors' Open Mic, click the play button on the audio section located to the right above.
Joel Cruz ’14, president of the Brooklyn College Poetry Slam Team says that his poetry comes from a deeply personal place.
Joe Wade, a Scholars Program student and veteran, writes poetry as a way to privilege humanity in the face of hostility.
Sophomore Michelle Cherian writes poetry as a way to challenge misogyny and patriarchal norms, and to stake claim to feminine agency and autonomy.
Award-winning poet Lisa Jarnot reads excerpts from her upcoming work to students in Brooklyn College’s nationally renowned M.F.A. creative writing program.
Poetry at the Pond: On May 15, the campus community was treated to performances by up-and-coming student poets and musicians at the Poetry at the Pond event, held near the college’s picturesque lily pond.
