Our Miss Brooks: A Centenial Celebration

To honor the legacy of poet Gwendolyn Brooks and inspire future generations, dozens of institutions, artists and educators have joined together to create programming for "Our Miss Brooks: A Centennial Celebration." Brooks was the first African American writer to receive a Pulitzer Prize and served as the Illinois Poet Laureate from 1968 to 2000 bringing an unparalled ability to capture the essence of Chicago life to the page. The celebration kicks off with a high-profile reading of Brooks' works at the Art Institute by the five other African American Pulitzer Prize-winning poets: Rita Dove, Yusef Komunyakaa, Natasha Tretheway, Tracy K. Smith and Gegory Pardlo. Programming will continue through June 2018 with readings, performances, school programs, discussions, exhibits and more.