BMCC Writing and Literature Major Stephanie Pacheco Named National Youth Poet Laureate

Borough of Manhattan Community College (BMCC/CUNY) Writing and Literature major Stephanie Pacheco has been named the 2024 National Youth Poet Laureate of the United States by youth literary organization Urban Word. The news was announced during the National Youth Poet Laureate Commencement on April 20 at The Kennedy Center in Washington D.C.

“When I was announced as winner of the National Poet Laureate title, the feeling I had is hard to describe,” said Pacheco. “It was a combination of shock, exuberant joy but most of all, I felt so full of love. Being awarded this title is such a great honor.”

With her new platform, Pacheco hopes to shed light on national conversations about educational justice, resource equity and access to art. Were it not for caring educators throughout her life, individuals and organization that taught her to dream and did the best they could with the resources they had, she says she would not have achieved the national title.

Former National Youth Poet Laureates include Amanda Gorman, who read from her poem—“The Hill we Climb”— during the 2020 presidential inauguration for Joe Biden at the nation’s capital.

Previously, Pacheco, who is originally from the Bronx, was named the 2023 New York City Youth Poet Laureate. Soon after, she was named the inaugural Youth Poet Laureate for New York State.  In 2022, she was part of the New York City Youth Slam Team with Urban Word NYC. Pacheco is an advocate for equity in access to education and arts, having worked with organizations such as The Healing Centered Schools Task Force.

“I would not be here if I didn’t find an arts organization like Urban Word that supplemented the creative programs that I did not have access to in school,” said Pacheco. “I imagine a city, a country and a world where resources are appropriately allocated in order to provide all students with an abundant education and an easy access to arts programs that will feed their creativity and allow them to find their passions.”

At BMCC, she cites English Professors Syreeta McFadden, Shawn Lavery and Academic Literacy and Linguistics Lecturer Brian W. Prager as the embodiment of true educators who have encouraged her to chase her passions.

“These professors have seen me in my full humanity, and reminded me of the power of language,” said Pacheco, who is also a recipient of the BMCC Writing and Literature program’s 2024 James Tolan Student Writing award for her poetry and fiction.

After BMCC, she plans to transfer to a four-year institution and continue her studies in English and Social Sciences.

Pacheco says it was community connection and social activism that introduced her to poetry. She says she quickly learned how poetry can bridge connections between people and has the ability to shift conversations in a room.

“Poetry transformed community organizing and social justice from something that felt abstract into something that you could almost taste,” said Pacheco. “My community joins me in every poem I share. And through this unified voice, I am constantly reminded that a better world is possible — because the poems said so and we agreed.”

Pacheco says her earliest poems painted a picture of the neighborhoods where she grew up by incorporating details about the community food, music and culture. Over the past few years, she says, the themes in her poetry have grown to cover many subject areas and she looks forward to their ever-expanding breadth in the future.

Since receiving this series of honors, culminating with the National Youth Poet Laureate title, her life has been transformed and Pacheco’s appreciation of poetry continues to expand.

“I’ve been able to share my poetry on absolutely incredible stages from the Department of Education and the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. to the Barclays Center and Apollo Theater in New York City,” said Pacheco. “Poetry is boundless and it ought to be on stages everywhere.”

Watch Stephanie Pacheco’s in-studio reading of her poem “Yo Steph, Where You From?” in this report from PIX 11.

Read more about Urban Word here.