Mississippi Poet Laureate

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.

Poetry Break

Poetry Break is a newspaper column designed to help readers of all ages and experience levels write poems of their own.