Yale Bulletin and Calendar

October 6, 2006|Volume 35, Number 5

John Hollander

Hollander named Connecticut's poet laureate

John Hollander, the Sterling Professor Emeritus of English at Yale, has been named Connecticut's new poet laureate.

The poet laureate, an honorary position established by the Connecticut legislature in 1985, functions as an advocate for poetry, fostering appreciation of poetry and writing throughout the state.

"Hollander is an inspiring presence in American literary life and one of the nation's most distinguished poets," said An-Ming Truxes, director of the Arts Division of the Connecticut Commission on Culture & Tourism (CCT), which announced Hollander's appointment.

The Yale poet will serve a five-year term, from 2007 through 2011, and will receive an annual stipend of $1,000. He succeeds Marilyn Nelson, who began her term as poet laureate in 2001. Previous Connecticut poet laureates include Leo Connellan and James Merrill.

Since receiving the Yale Younger Poets Prize in 1958 for his first collection of poems, "A Crackling of Thorns," Hollander has written 22 books of poetry, which have been acclaimed for their virtuosity and originality. He is also the author of several works of criticism and numerous anthologies, as well as books for children and operatic and lyric works with composers such as Milton Babbitt and George Perle. Until his retirement in 2003, Hollander taught at Yale for decades, and he has given many public talks and readings. His "Rhyme's Reason" has been hailed as the definitive handbook for teaching poetry and has influenced generations of students.

Hollander's many honors and awards include the Bollingen Prize, the Levinson Prize and the Shaughnessy Medal of the Modern Language Association, as well as fellowships from the MacArthur Foundation, the Guggenheim Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts. A former chancellor of the Academy of American Poets, he received the 1997 Connecticut Governor's Arts Award.

"John Hollander brings honor to the poet laureate post, and his extensive work and talent serve as an inspiration for Connecticut's citizens," says Jennifer Aniskovich, executive director of the CCT. "We are fortunate to count this talented poet among our rich and diverse pool of state artists."

The Connecticut Commission on Culture & Tourism convened a distinguished panel of poets and literary professionals to serve on the poet laureate selection committee. Panelists included Elizabeth Alexander, poet and professor of African-American studies at Yale; David Barber, poetry editor at the Atlantic Monthly; and J.D. McClatchy, poet, librettist and professor of English at Yale.

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