In her capacity as Mississippi Poet Laureate, Catherine works to increase access to poetry across the state and to amplify the poetic voices of all Mississippians. In addition to working with schools and community groups, Catherine hosts a poetry podcast and writes a monthly column for the Mississippi Books Page of the Clarion-Ledger and Hattiesburg American newspapers. In the fall of 2022, with help from the Mississippi Center for the Book, she launched the My Town Mississippi Poetry Project, a statewide poetry-writing initiative for students in grades K-12.
The Mississippi Poetry Podcast
The Mississippi Poetry Podcast features poems from and conversations with Mississippi poets. Each 15-minute episode is paired with a supplemental resource for educators and community groups.
- Ep. 1: Aimee Nezhukumatathil
- Ep. 2: C. Liegh McInnis
- Ep. 3: Beth Ann Fennelly
- Ep. 4: C.T. Salazar
- Ep. 5: Adam Clay
- Ep. 6: Charlie Braxton
- Ep. 7: Angela Ball
- Ep. 8: Joshua Nguyen
- Ep. 9: Derrick Harriell
- Ep. 10: Treasure Shields Redmond
- Ep. 11: James Dickson
- Ep. 12: RaShell Smith-Spears
- Ep. 13: Jermaine Thompson
- Ep. 14: Ann Fisher-Wirth
- Ep. 15: Christie Collins
- & more to come!
Poetry Break
Poetry Break is a newspaper column designed to help readers of all ages and experience levels write poems of their own.
- July 2021: The Peak of Summer
- August 2021: What We Don’t Know
- September 2021: Rooted in Nature
- October 2021: Words Like Candy
- November 2021: The Anti-Hallmark Card
- December 2021: Wait & Create
- January 2022: Don’t Explain
- March 2022: Welcome, Distractions!
- April 2022: Building an Observation Archive
- May 2022: Truth Through Metaphor
- June 2022: Letter to Your Past Self
- July 2022: Building on Cliché
- August 2022: Beginning with a Line
- September 2022: The Places that Shape Us
- October 2022: Rotating the Obstacles
- November 2022: A Quiet Thank You
- February 2023: An Unexpected Treasure Trove of Language
- March 2023: To Spring
- April 2023: A No-Pressure Reading Practice