Whitman College Welcomes 2026 Texas Poet Laureate Kevin Prufer
By Leah Lovato 鈥�29 and Lina Paykar 鈥�29
Poet and novelist Kevin Prufer will visit Whitman College as part of the Visiting Writers Reading Series on Thursday, April 9, at 7 p.m. in Kimball Theater in Hunter Conservatory. Prufer will read from his work and answer questions from the audience. The event is free and open to the Whitman community and the public, and is especially encouraged for students and faculty interested in Creative Writing.
Prufer is the 2026 Texas Poet Laureate and the author of numerous books of poetry and fiction. His most recent poetry collection, (Copper Canyon Press, 2023), received the 2024 Rilke Prize and offers an intimate meditation on mortality, memory, and legacy through narratives and lyric experimentation. His 2018 poetry collection, (Four Way Books), was longlisted for the 2019 Pulitzer Prize.
Prufer’s most recent novel, (Acre Books, 2024), was described by the Los Angeles Times as a “small press gem.” Set in a small town altered by mysterious sleep-inducing mists, the novel serves as an allegory for post-pandemic America, exploring fear, loss, friendship and survival amid social collapse.
He has two forthcoming books in 2027: “Good People: Poems” (Copper Canyon Press) and “Summer of Shooting Stars: A Novel” (Slant Books).
Born in Cleveland, Prufer now lives in Houston, where he teaches in the Creative Writing Program at the University of Houston and in low-residency Master of Fine Arts programs at Lesley University and Holy Family University. He is also an editor and literary advocate. He co-directs the , which republishes the work of overlooked American poets, and previously served as editor of Pleiades: A Journal of New Writing.
April is National Poetry Month
Whitman is celebrating poetry all month long! Keep an eye out for these and other free public events:
- April 8, 7 p.m.: Washington State Poet Laureate Derek Sheffield will at Gesa Power House Theatre
- April 14, 7 p.m.: Actor, speaker and writer Darius Wallace will perform
- April 23, 7 p.m.: Poet and memorist Maya Jewell Zeller will close this year’s
- April 30, 7 p.m.: Whitman student poets will read from their own work
About the Series
The Visiting Writers Reading Series brings established writers to read from their work at Whitman College over the course of the academic year. The series is sponsored by the Department of English, the Office of the Provost and Dean of the Faculty, the Lawrence Parke Murphy and Robert Goldstein Trust, and by generous donations from the extended Whitman community.
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Published on Apr 6, 2026