WAUSAU – The city has appointed it’s first poet laureate.
As Wausau’s poet laureate, Dawn Anderson is charged with celebrating and expanding on poetry and literary arts in our community by promoting poetry as an art form, expanding access to the literary arts, connecting the community to poetry, and promoting poetry as a community voice that contributes to a sense of place.
Anderson is a Wausau native who says her purpose is to put good into the world through positive poetry.
“I truly believe in the power of poetry,” Anderson said in a news release. “Poetry inspires. Poetry helps us process our thoughts and feelings and choose happiness. A poem is shared between each reader and writer. We bring our own perspective and experiences to that poem, making our own meaning. This is powerful stuff that has been ‘secret’ far too long.”
Anderson has decades of experience in writing poetry. She has been internationally published in notable journals, and facilitated poetry workshops and lead readings across the world. She earned her Bachelor’s Degree in communication from the University of Wisconsin, her Masters of Education Technology from Boise State University, and holds several certificates in training, teaching and human resources.
Poet laureate is a two-year term. Anderson will share four poems every year with the community in an official capacity in addition to participating in the Central Wisconsin Book Festival.
