Georgia Mountain Beacon

Emory University Professor Will Begin One-Year Term At Library of Congress in September

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., congratulated Emory University professor Natasha Trethewey for being named the U.S. Poet Laureate.

Librarian of Congress James H. Billington today announced that Trethewey has been appointed as the Library’s Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry for 2012-2013. Trethewey will begin her duties in September with a reading of her work at the Library of Congress in Washington DC.

“I congratulate Ms. Trethewey for being named U.S. Poet Laureate, the latest distinguished honor she has earned for her Pulitzer Prize winning poetry,” said Isakson. “Ms. Trethewey is a Georgia resident, a University of Georgia graduate and an Emory professor, and this honor today brings a great deal of pride to our state. I wish Ms. Trethewey the best in her new role.”

Trethewey, the 19th Poet Laureate, currently resides in Decatur, Ga., and is an English and creative writing professor at Emory University. A native of Gulfport, Miss., Trethewey earned a B.A. in English from the University of Georgia, an M.A. in poetry from Hollins University, and an M.F.A. from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.

She is the author of three poetry collections, including “Native Guard,” (2006), winner of the 2007 Pulitzer Prize in Poetry; “Bellocq’s Ophelia” (2002); and “Domestic Work” (2000).  Her newest collection of poems, “Thrall,” is forthcoming from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt in 2012. Trethewey is the author of a nonfiction book, “Beyond Katrina: A Meditation on the Mississippi Gulf Coast” (2010).

The Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry position has existed since 1936, when Archer M. Huntington endowed the Chair of Poetry at the Library. The Poet Laureate, who is named by the U.S. Librarian of Congress, suggests authors to read in the literary series and plans other special events during the literary season.

Tags: Johnny Isakson, U.S. Poet Laureate