Gov. Chris Sununu nominated a poet from Londonderry to be the next state Poet Laureate at today's Excecutive Council meeting.
Alexandria Peary has written several books, published in dozens of journals, and holds an MFA from the prestigious Iowa Writer's Workshop. She's also a professor at Salem State University. In a statement, Peary says she's committed to helping others "advance their writing."
The job of Poet Laureate requires some level of community service and promotion of the literary arts. Sununu's first choice for the poet laureate, Daniel Thomas Moran, was met with protest from the state's poetry community.
Critics noted that Moran didn't make the shortlist of the committee tasked with recommending the next poet laureate, and said his published work was thin. Peary did make that shortlist.
Don Kimball, President of the New Hampshire Poetry Society, also sits on the Poet Laureate Selection Committee, which offers recommendations to the Governor on candidates for the position.
In a statement, Kimball says, "We at the Poetry Society are happy, at long last, to have a very well qualified poet to serve as our Poet Laureate. Alexandria Peary will bring long administrative, academic and creative achievements to this honored post and we look forward to working with her."
After the formal nomination, the governor's office says a confirmation vote will likely take place at the Executive Council meeting on Oct. 23.
