Arts and Cultural Alliance to Present First Sarasota Youth Poet Laureate and Finalists

October 10, 2022 – Sarasota

The Arts and Cultural Alliance of Sarasota County, along with partnering sponsors Bookstore1 Sarasota and The Ringling Museum, will present the very first Sarasota Youth Poet Laureate and program finalists at their inaugural awards ceremony on Monday, November 7, 2022 at 5:30 PM.

The ceremony will take place on stage of the Historic Asolo Theatre at The Ringling Museum and will include the presentation of the 2022-2023 Sarasota Youth Poet Laureate, remarks from community leaders, and poetry readings from Ada Limón and program finalists. A book signing event with Ms. Limón and reception will follow.

Thanks to a generous donation from the Leigh Perry Charitable Gift Foundation, any student from the region who pre-registers, along with 2 members of their family can attend the ceremony for free and will also receive 1 copy of Ada Limón’s book “The Hurting Kind.”

“We are beyond thrilled to have the Poet Laureate of the United States coming to Sarasota to celebrate this program and our students,” Jim Shirley, Executive Director of the Arts and Cultural Alliance of Sarasota County said. “This is a fantastic opportunity for our students to meet and work with one of the most successful contemporary poets in the nation.”

Ada Limón is the author of six books of poetry, including The Carrying, which won the National Book Critics Circle Award for Poetry. Limón is also the host of the critically-acclaimed poetry podcast, The Slowdown. Her new book of poetry, The Hurting Kind, is out now from Milkweed Editions. She is the 24th Poet Laureate of The United States.

For the general public, tickets are $35 and include admission to the ceremony, as well as the reception and 1 copy of Ada Limón’s book, “The Hurting Kind.”

For student registration and general admission tickets, please visit, SarasotaArts.org/SPYL-Awards-Ceremony