About Us

Integrated Humanities Center
King Hall D4051
California State University, Los Angeles

Mailing Address
Center for Contemporary Poetry and Poetics
College of Arts and Letters
California State University, Los Angeles 
5151 State University Drive
Los Angeles, CA 90032-8100

Mission, Goals and Background

The Center for Contemporary Poetry and Poetics provides a forum for everyone interested in poetry by:

• Presenting activities and events to promote the full range of poetic voices from diverse cultural backgrounds and approaches to the genre;
• Promoting appreciation and understanding of contemporary poetry and poetics in a wide array of forms and styles;
• Encouraging research and preservation in contemporary poetry and poetics and stimulating the creation of new poetry.  

By creating a forum for discussion, celebration, reading and performance of poetry, The Center for Contemporary Poetry and Poetics serves as a vehicle to bring together scholars, students, poets and the public for purposes of:

• Establishing strong links with the community and other academic and cultural partners through the dynamic vehicle of poetry;
• Providing programming that is expansive, inclusive and of the highest quality to serve our varied and multicultural participants as effectively and inventively as possible.

The Center for Contemporary Poetry and Poetics continues Cal State LA's history of bringing together scholars, practitioners, students and other parties interested in current poetry and poetics. From its founding in 1947, Cal State LA has been a major hub contributing to the development of new audiences for poetry in Los Angeles, and to the creation, study, promotion, and consideration of poetry more generally.  Some of the earliest alumni of Los Angeles State College, including Henri Coulette (’51), along with founding members of the faculty, including Frederick Shroyer and Thomas McGrath, established this tradition early in the history of the campus. In 1977, alumna Barbara Dubé Gershman along with James Krusoe formed The Writing Center to maintain this tradition. The Center for Contemporary Poetry and Poetics was founded by presidential charter in 2006.  Further growth in poetry programming at Cal State LA has included a British Council Poets-in-Residence partnership, collaborations with various regional educational institutions and Cal State LA divisions, and a fellowship program designed to support Cal State LA faculty from all disciplines who wish to incorporate poetry into their teaching.  And perhaps most significantly, the Jean Burden Reading Series, established in 1986 and held annually ever since, carries on into the present Cal State LA's enduring commitment to poetic experience.