Two local high school students are among the 5 finalists for the Nebraska Youth Poet Laureate 2023 competition, part of the National Youth Poet Laureate (YPL) Competition and overseen by the Nebraska Writers Collective..
Eve Bishop of Chadron High and Gordon-Rushville’s Aliyah American Horse will join the 3 other finalists, all from Omaha, for the finals a week from Saturday at the Omaha Conservatory of Music.
Bishop, American Horse, and the other contestants will share their poems and the 2023 Youth Poet Laureate will be crowned. The winner will be eligible for the Regional and, hopefully, National Youth Poet Laureate competitions.
They will also receive $1,00-to-$2,000 toward a community engagement project of their design, year-long guidance from a creative and civic mentor, a published chapbook by the NWC Press, and up to six public readings in the state.
A freshman at Chadron High, Eve Bishop’s work as a writer was recognized earlier this year as well. She placed in multiple categories in the 2023 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, presented by Hastings College.
Bishop’s prose writings in that competition were recognized by a panel of creative professions as among the most outstanding works submitted by Nebraska students for this year’s competition.
The National Youth Poet Laureate program was begun to identify influential youth poets and is championed by Urban Word NYC.
The Nebraska Writers Collective launched the state’s first-ever YPL season in 2021 with Mimi Yu the first winner. The current Nebraska Young Poet Laureate is Tanya Bachu