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Cal Poly Graduate Student Wins University's Academy of American Poets Award

English graduate student Jonathan Maule won Cal Poly’s Academy of American Poets Contest for his poem “Repurposed.”

The New York City based-Academy of American Poets, a longstanding advocate for the art of poetry, established its University and College Poetry Prize program in 1955 to recognize students' talent. Since 1988, Cal Poly has held the annual contest, open to all university majors.

This year’s guest judge was poet Greg Glazner, a Walt Whitman award-winner and author of two books of poetry, “From the Iron Chair” and “Singularity.” He teaches writing at UC Davis.

Maule’s winning piece made an impact on Glazner. “His poem is a moving study of brothers and is written vulnerably and unflinchingly, with painstaking attention to detail,” Glazner said. “The poem also has an admirable command of voice, arc, and humanity, showing us how perspective deepens, in the end, into responsibility.”

Cal Poly English Professor Kevin Clark said, “Jonathan is one of those poets who has instant access to the inner reaches of both his heart and his imagination. He’s not afraid of what he finds in either.” 

First honorable mention was awarded to English graduate student Lauren Henley for her noir-inspired poem “Cool Hand Luke,” which takes its title from the Paul Newman movie and expresses the way romantic love can offer hope in dark days.

Wine and viticulture student Madeline Mori earned second honorable mention for her atmospheric poem “Sa-­I-­Gu,” which renders the tensions and dangers of immigrant urban life, especially for shop owners.

This year’s contest witnessed a record number of submissions. “Nearly 100 poems were submitted,” Clark said. “Right now, there are more good, young poets at the university than I can remember at any other time. It’s a privilege to teach them, but it would be extremely difficult to judge their work in a contest.”

The winning poems will appear on the Cal Poly English Department website. The contest is sponsored by the English Department and the Academy of American Poets.

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