By Lauryn Jelsema, Culture Editor
On April 25, the Alpha Chi Iota English Honor Society and the AQ English Department celebrated the release of the SAMPLER 38, featuring AQ students’ art, poetry, and short fiction.
SAMPLER writers next to Grand Rapids Poet Laureate Christine Stephens-Krieger – Photo by Cristian Zacharias
The magazine features a multitude of students’ work, many of whom attended the event to read their submissions, including those who had won the top prize and honorable mentions from the Academy of American Poets University.
Top ten poet and vice president of AQ’s Alpha Chi Iota chapter, Zobelle Bean, started off the release, thanking the faculty, the preliminary judges, the final judge and editors who made the Sampler 38 possible. She also acknowledged Dr. Jennifer Dawson, who came out of retirement this year to serve as the coordinator for the Sampler once again.
Bean finished her welcoming statements by introducing the Professor of Art and the photographer for all pieces featured in the Sampler, Dana Freeman.
Freeman highlighted the artwork featured on the front cover of the magazine, “Self Portrait Bust” by student Zoe Monkiewicz. She explained that it was the roadmap for designing this year’s edition.
Christine Stephens-Krieger, Grand Rapids’ poet laureate, was then introduced to the stage, as she was the final judge deciding which piece would receive the Academy of American Poets University and College Poetry Prize. She began her time by reading aloud a few of her poems from her debut book Love Garden at the End of the World. In total, Stephens-Krieger recited ten poems: Incarnation, Everything is Magic, Mother, The Ascension of Joy, Renovation, New Girl in Paradise, Becoming Someone New, Moments for My Father, Love Garden at the End of the World (the title poem), and The Secret Everyone Knows.
Stephens-Krieger reading from her book Love Garden at the End of the World – Photo by Cristian Zacharias
After concluding the short reading of her recent work, Stephens-Krieger pulled out a marked-up copy of the newly printed Sampler and gave her thoughts on the two poets she chose for both winner and runner-up, and proceeded to give her general remarks about the work she had read from the rest of the student submissions.
“Each one of these pieces is unique. Each one carries the weight of a thousand words,” said Stephens-Krieger.
The poet laureate then announced that the winning poem and the runner-up would be read aloud.
Christian Alejandro Martinez-Ramos was the runner-up for the Academy of American Poets University and College Poetry Prize for his poem “Who am I?” Martinez-Ramos was welcomed up to the stage to recite his poem aloud.
“Wow, what a powerhouse of a poem,” Stephens-Krieger’s remarks at the beginning of the Sampler 38 read.
Elizabeth Bruso, the author of the winning poem, “Misplaced December,” was unable to attend the event due to a prior engagement she had scheduled for volunteering, so Dr. Amy Dunham-Strand, chair of both AQ’s English and Women and Gender Studies department, read the poem on stage in her stead.
“This poet accomplishes so much in such a small amount of space and wields the sonnet form like a master,” Stephens-Krieger said in her commentary.
After both poems had been read, the rest of the writers featured in the magazine were invited to come up and read their featured work.
Saints can pick up their own free copy of the Sampler 38 in the AQ bookstore.
Cover for the Sampler 38 – Photo by Lauryn Jelsema
The Saint 