
Urbana Poet Laureate Celebration
- Event Date: Sunday, May 5, 2024
- Time: 1:00 pm–4:00 pm (CDT)
- Location: Hundley Central Core Gallery, Spurlock Museum, 600 S. Gregory St., Urbana, IL
- Age: Age 12 and up
- Cost: Free
This year, the 2024 Poet Laureate is none other than one of our Black Joy Project curators, Ruby Mendenhall, and the Spurlock Museum is proud to host a poetry-writing workshop in her honor. Learn what inspires Ruby to express herself creatively and hear from her mentors. Then, discover what inspires you!
Workshop attendees will enjoy:
- Hearing from Ruby and some very special guests
- Poetry readings, spoken word, music, and art
- Snacks
- A poetry-writing workshop for those aspiring to enter next year!
The City of Urbana Poet Laureate program (external link) launched in 2019 to “recognize a resident poet who honors and serves our diverse community and elevates the importance of the creative writing art form.”
The program includes a youth component starting at age 12: teachers and parents, do you have a child just dying to express themselves? This may be THE event for them!

This program is partially supported by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council Agency.
Contact
For further information on this event, contact the Museum Information Desk at spurlock-museum@illinois.edu (email link) or (217) 333-2360.
All participants are welcome. To request disability-related accommodations for this event, please contact Brian Cudiamat at cudiamat@illinois.edu (email link) or (217) 244-5586.