Academy of American Poets

The Academy of American Poets is the largest organization in the United States dedicated to the art of poetry. The academy was created in 1934 in New York City by Ms. Marie Bullock with a mission to "support American poets at all stages of their careers and to foster the appreciation of contemporary poetry." In 1936, the academy was officially incorporated as a non-profit organization. Ms. Bullock was the president of the academy for the next half a century, running the academy out of her apartment for thirty of those years. She started the academy after her return from her studies at the Sorbonne in Paris. Returning to America, Ms. Bullock was dismayed at the lack of support for poetry in her home country. Taking advice from friends such as Edwin Arlington Robinson and Joseph Auslander, Ms. Bullock raised plans and funds to create the academy and help support and nuture the American poet.

Related Topics:
United States - Poetry - 1934 - 1936 - Sorbonne - Paris - Edwin Arlington Robinson - Joseph Auslander

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Now celebrating over 70 years of existence, the academy fulfills its goals in two ways. The first, to "support American poets", is accomplished by the myriad of awards handed out by the academy. There are seven major awards handed out by the academy and over 200 college awards handed out at schools across the country. To "foster the appreciation of contemporary poetry," the academy runs numerous programs, including Poets.org, National Poetry Month (April), an array of prizes for poets at every stage of their careers, and the Poetry Audio Archive, over 500 audio recordings of poetry dating back to the 1960s.

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