It was just in January when former National Youth Poet Laureate Amanda Gorman went viral following her recital of a poem at the presidential inauguration.
On Thursday the Kennedy Center, along with the literary arts program Urban Word, named incoming Stanford student Alexandra Huynh the new National Youth Poet Laureate, reported The Daily Democrat.
As part of her role, the second generation Vietnamese American will visit schools and hold workshops around the country.
“I spend a lot of time in my head, so poetry is for me a sort of survival mechanism,” Huynh said to KCRA. “I wouldn’t be able to move through the world with the same amount of clarity had I not worked it out first on the page.”
Huynh is a graduate of UC Davis’ own Sacramento Area Youth Speaks, or SAYS.
“This is monumental and exciting news for Alex, SAYS, the Sacramento arts community and the young people of Sacramento,” Hill said. “Alex now stands among the top youth poets in the nation and SAYS is honored to stand alongside this journey with her.”
SAYS first broke word of Huynh appointment back in January, the day after the inauguration.
“We are so very proud of Alexandra,” said Michael Cirelli, who founded the Urban Word program. “Her words, poise, and brilliance speak to the heart of what our nation needs to hear right now.…We congratulate Alexandra and each finalist for their hard work and achievements,” he said to Kirkus.
Huynh performed at the graduation at Mira Loma High School last year.
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Outstanding. Unlike so many non-achieving Americans who can’t compose a coherent sentence and remain in the doldrums of society.