Amanda Williamsen was selected to be the Poet Laureate for the term beginning January 1, 2016-December 31, 2018. However, in the spring of 2016, Amanda’s husband was offered and accepted a position in Seattle, WA and very soon after school was out, the family relocated to Bremerton Island, WA. Amanda is enjoying a more rural setting-and new subjects for her poetry.

The poetry selection committee was fortunate to be able to identify one of the followers of the Poet Laureate program, and past applicant, Ann Muto, to fulfill the remainder of Amanda’s term. Ann is a former educator, and loves the out of doors–especially Point Lobos. Her poetry reached back to her rich experiences of being a part of a Japanese family interred here in California, and the joy of being in nature.

Adrian Kolb, Bev Lenihan, and Ann Stevenson are managing the Poet Laureate program during the 2016-2017 term.  Each brings unique strengths to the program.

The Selection Committee will again gather in spring of 2017 to begin the process for 2018-2019 Cupertino Poet Laureate. The goal is to bring on new leadership to the Selection Committee, using a Playbook as a guide for the process.