Jay Rockefeller: “Baisden is one of several students visiting Washington for the Poetry of Rural Places program, representing the National…”

“Baisden is one of several students visiting Washington for the Poetry of Rural Places program, representing the National Writing Project, NWP, and the Rural School and Community Trust initiatives. Working together in a unique partnership, the NWP and the Rural School and Community Trust have provided students from rural areas nationwide an opportunity to compose and publish original poems that convey their sense of place and vision of life in rural America. Beginning with local programs led by writing project sites, the contest culminates in a national reading event at the Library of Congress. Hopefully, this contest will inspire students nationwide to use the power of poetry to explore their lives, communities, and futures as rural Americans. I encourage all of my colleagues to read the other poems written by these young people as they offer a profound vision of life in contemporary rural America. Their poems are available at www.ruralpoetry.org.<bullet> ____________________”