(February 12, 2014)

College hosts Louisiana Poet Laureate

SHREVEPORT, LA — Ava Leavell Haymon, Louisiana Poet Laureate, will visit Centenary College Monday, February 17, to give a reading from her latest collection of poems, Eldest Daughter: Poems. A signing will follow the reading.

Haymon's poems have been published in a number of nationally recognized journals, including Poetry, The Southern Review, and Prairie Schooner. She is the author of four collections of poetry published by LSU Press and was the recipient of the Louisiana Literature Prize in 2003, the L.E. Phillabaum Poetry Award for 2010, and the Mississippi Institute of Arts and Letters Award in 2011. Haymon serves as editor for the Barataria Poetry Series, premiering this spring.

Not only a poet and playwright but also a teacher, Haymon leads classes in Louisiana during the school year and directs retreats for writers and artists in New Mexico during the summer. She recently performed with jazz composer Stephen Masakowski, who was inspired by her work to compose seven new compositions.

Haymon was named Poet Laureate of the State of Louisiana in July 2013. She is visiting Shreveport through a grant provided by C. E. Byrd High School and Caddo Magnet High School.

To find out more about Haymon, visit avahaymon.com.