Frank Sherlock was named Philadelphia’s second-ever poet laureate. The first, renowned writer Sonia Sanchez, HON ’98, was the Laura Carnell Chair in English in the College of Liberal Arts until her retirement in 1999 and also was the university’s first Presidential Fellow. A 2013 Pew Fellow, Sherlock attended the College of Liberal Arts.
That both are connected to Temple is no coincidence. The university’s thriving poetry scene spans more than 20 years, and its backbone is the MFA Creative Writing Program. In addition to Sanchez, the program faculty boasts a litany of accomplished poets, including Creative Writing Program Director Jena Osman, a 2006 Pew Fellow and co-founder of the internationally recognized literary magazine Chain; Assistant Professor Brian Teare, a finalist for the 2013 Kingsley Tufts Poetry Award—one of the most prestigious awards for contemporary poets; and Professor Emerita Rachel Blau DuPlessis, a 2002 Pew Fellow, and one of the foremost feminist critics and scholars in the field of poetry.
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