Poetry @ the Public

Poetry readings highlighting regional and native Arkansas poets in partnership with the University of Central Arkansas School of Language & Literature.

Join us for an afternoon of light refreshments, community, and poetry! Doors will open at 2:00 pm and guests are invited to enjoy light refreshments and a meet-and-greet with the authors. Readings will start at 2:30 pm.

--

About the Poets:

Michelle Stoll is a native of North Little Rock, Arkansas and a graduate of the UCA English program. While an undergraduate, she served as editor-in-chief of Vortex, the award-winning student literary and arts magazine at the university. She later earned an MFA in Creative Writing from Mississippi University for Women. Her poetry has appeared in journals such as West Trade Review, Pine Hills Review, River Heron Review, Rock Paper Poem, Crosswinds, Galway Review, SLANT, and others. She was shortlisted for the Wigtown International Poetry Prize and was a finalist for the River Heron Poetry Prize and in the poetry competition connected to the 2026 Tennessee Williams Fest in New Orleans. Michelle is a member of the editorial teams of River Heron Review and SLANT. She is also a Master Naturalist and a world traveler.

--

Acie Clark is an Assistant Professor of Creative Writing at UCA and serves as faculty advisor to Vortex. He received his MFA from the University of Alabama, where he worked for Black Warrior Review as an online editor. His poetry, fiction, and nonfiction have been published in Puerto del Sol, Poet Lore, Shenandoah, American Short Fiction, Passages North, The Massachusetts Review, and others. In addition to his work at UCA, he also teaches at the Interlochen Summer Arts Program in Michigan. He was also a 2024-2025 writing fellow at the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown, Massachusetts. His debut poetry collection, Small Talk, was published by Hub City Press in September and was named the winner of the New Southern Voices Poetry Prize.

--

This event is free and open to the public.

Upcoming Events