mk zariel named City of Madison’s 2026-27 Youth Poet Laureate

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Madison Youth Poet Laureate program logo

The Madison Arts Commission has named mk zariel (pronouns: it/its) as Madison's fifth Youth Poet Laureate. 

zariel is a nonbinary butch theater artist. It previously served as the City's Vice Youth Poet Laureate and is a published author of three chapbooks. It also contributes to literary and advisory columns and makes appearances on various podcasts.

zariel's journey as a poet began with reluctance due to its dislike for rhymed and metered verse, something it said it's seen among other teenagers. Skeptical about the art form, zariel began writing poetry when it was 11, the same age it came out as LGBTQ+. Since then, poetry has become a way of building community and advocating for LGBTQ+ for zariel. 

As Madison Youth Poet Laureate, zariel wants to make poetry more accessible to emerging poets, promote spaces for trans artists to express themselves and provide opportunities for young residents in the city.

I am beyond honored to serve the Madison community as your Youth Poet Laureate. As a nonbinary lesbian and queer liberationist organizer, I believe firmly in the power of the literary arts to build community among people of all identities, ages, and backgrounds, and I seek to create bold and experimental poetry that is accessible for everyone. I am so grateful to Madison's arts commission for selecting me for this program and to the Madison literary and activist communities for supporting me.

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mk zariel, incoming Madison Youth Poet Laureate

mk zariel is a poet of striking imagination and sincere lyric force, deeply attentive to the ways identity, place, and community shape one another. At a moment when young people need more space to speak honestly, be heard fully, and encounter one another across difference, we need that kind of poetic attention more than ever. I'm thrilled to work alongside mk as Madison's next Youth Poet Laureate. It brings not only a distinctive poetic voice to the role but also a generous vision of poetry as something young people can enter, change, and enrich the literary life of our city.

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Steven Espada Dawson, Madison Poet Laureate

The public is invited to zariel's opening reception and poetry reading as the City of Madison's new Youth Poet Laureate. The event will take place on Tuesday, September 22, 2026, at 5:30pm in room 206 of the Madison Municipal Building, located at 215 Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd. An elevator is available by the staircase at the Doty Street end of the building. 

The Madison Youth Poet Laureate program is a project of the Madison Arts Commission in partnership with Urban Word. The National Youth Poet Laureate program honors talented poets between the ages 13 and 19 and provides for competitive opportunities for young people to showcase their literary art on the regional and national stage. 

Over the course of its year of service as the Madison Youth Poet Laureate, zariel will give three public readings, including a reading before the Madison Common Council. Additionally, it will have the opportunity to apply for the National Youth Poet Laureate role in the fall.

About the National Youth Poet Laureate Program

The National Youth Poet Laureate Program works with local arts organization across the United States to elevate youth voices that are committed to artistic excellence, civic engagement and social impact. The National Youth Poet Laureate Program is supported by the academy of American Poets, Poetry Society of America, the Library of Congress, the National Endowment for the Arts, the National Parks Service, and many more, and is an initiative of Urban Word NYC, Inc., an award-winning youth literary arts and youth development organization. 

About the Madison Arts Commission

The Madison Arts Commission's (MAC) is an 11-member citizen commission appointed by the mayor to advise the City about matters of arts and culture. MAC's mission is to foster arts appreciation by initiating partnerships, developing new audiences, and sponsoring diverse artistic activities by emerging and established artists and arts organizations while preserving Madison's rich artistic tradition. To support a full creative life for all, the Madison Arts Commission commits to championing policies and practices of cultural equity that empower a just, inclusive, and equitable city. 

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