The PoetryFoundation.org wants to be “a vigorous presence for poetry in our culture”, and I have to admire how vigorously they work toward that end. It all began with Poetry Magazine. The century old independent journal predates the Foundation by 90 years. The Foundation itself is the newer evolution of the Modern Poetry Foundation, which was founded in 1941 to ensure publication of Poetry Magazine.
Along with the printed word, the Foundation's site has podcasts of poems read by authors and others, of groups discussing poems and poets, and of interviews with poets. While many podcasts are produced by the Foundation, others are links to like‐minded broadcasters (such as from Jacket2 in Philadelphia).
Visitors to the site can search poems and poets by keyword, which brings up entries on poems, poets, and articles on poems or poets. The left side of the results screen shows limiters. Click on any one to cull the list by broad category (poet, poem, article) or format (audio, video, blog). Visitors can also browse poets or the titles of poems. As with the search feature, categories on the left side of the screen allow visitors to focus their search for poets and poems, by region or school for poets, subject or occasion for poems. Author entries include a link to the author's biography, and either the titles of poems present on the site or the statement “There are no poems by this poet on our website”. Specifically this is true, they list only the poems they received permission to reproduce on the site. On the other hand, they do provide seamless access to poems on other sites. Clicking on the poet's name leads to a biographical sketch and the option of linking to Poems, Articles, & More, which lists all works accessible through the site by that particular poet.
Under Initiatives and Events is a link to Poetry Out Loud, a recitation contest “Created by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation, Poetry Out Loud is administered in partnership with the State Arts Agencies of all 50 states, the District of Columbia, the US Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico”. Students choose a poem to recite in a competition that leads to a national contest in Washington, DC.
Travelers interested in historical connections to poets and poetry can print guides to Poetry Tours in New York, Chicago, and Washington, D.C. Armchair travelers can catch the tours online. The audio that accompanies the online tour is available for download to mp3 players, for either the on foot or arm chair traveler. Teachers will find the Learning Lab helpful, and anyone who simply loves children's poetry can get their fill from the Children's Poetry page. Love poetry but are too busy to stop and read? They have an app for that. They also have a library/museum/office building in Chicago. Listings of event and exhibits are available online.
The site is highly recommended.
