Purdue Fort Wayne prof named next Indiana poet laureate

Indianapolis, Indiana – The next Indiana poet laureate will be a professor in the English and linguistics department at Purdue University Fort Wayne.

Although there have been unofficial poet laureates named before 2002, Curtis L. Crisler will be the seventh formal poet laureate in the state.

According to a press statement the Indiana Arts Commission released on Thursday, the Gary native was selected for the honorary position by a selection committee that included seven members from Indiana’s colleges and universities and the executive director of the organization.

In honor of National Poetry Month in April, Indiana Humanities published an interview with Crisler. Interviewer: This is Gary, Indiana — America the lovely, and you are a small lad standing on broken wood between the snaggle-toothed opening in the street. Crisler composed this poem, “Return to Boomtowns,” which is one of Crisler’s favorites.

Matthew Graham served as Indiana’s previous poet laureate, holding the position since 2020.