Bucks County poets have until Friday, September 25, to submit their work for a shot at becoming the county's 50th poet laureate, a milestone for what Bucks County Community College says is Pennsylvania's longest-running poet laureate contest.
The competition, announced Monday by BCCC, carries a $500 honorarium, a plaque from the Bucks County commissioners, and a November reading and reception at the college's Newtown Campus. The winner will share the stage with 2025 Poet Laureate Madeline Marriott, a Holland resident and freelance journalist who, at 23, became the second-youngest laureate in the program's history when she was selected in November 2025.
"I feel very lucky to live in a place that values poetry," Marriott told WHYY News in November 2025, after her selection as the 49th laureate.
How to enter
Any Bucks County resident 18 or older who has not previously won the title may enter. The contest requires 10 original poems in any style, form or length. Work may be published or unpublished, must be typewritten or word-processed with one poem per page in black ink, and must be submitted online at bucks.edu/academics/schools/lang-lit/poet-laureate. There is no entry fee.
The judges
Two accomplished poets will evaluate submissions. Michelle Messina Reale, a professor at Arcadia University and the 2026 Montgomery County Poet Laureate, serves as preliminary judge. Her latest collection, "Let it be Extravagant," was published by Bordighera Press in 2025. She also directs Arcadia's low-residency MFA program.
Final judge Jeanne Marie Beaumont is the author of five poetry collections, including "Placebo Effects," a National Poetry Series winner. Born and raised in Delaware County, she formerly directed the Frost Place Seminar and has taught at Rutgers University and the 92nd Street Y.
A program with deep roots
The Bucks County Poet Laureate program was founded in 1977 by the Bucks County Council on the Arts. BCCC took over as sponsor in 1986. Past laureates have earned Guggenheim Fellowships and National Endowment for the Arts fellowships, according to the college. The program also runs the Bucks County High School Poet of the Year contest each spring.
Professor Ethel Rackin, who directs the program through BCCC's School of Language and Literature, can be reached at [email protected] for questions.
What's ahead
- Friday, September 25 — Submission deadline for the 50th Bucks County Poet Laureate contest
- November 2026 — Reading and reception at BCCC's Newtown Campus (exact date to be announced at bucks.edu)
