KEY WEST, FL, October 20, 2026— The College of the Florida Keys (CFK) invites the community to a free reading and conversation with acclaimed poet Traci Brimhall, former Poet Laureate of Kansas and a Guggenheim Fellow, on Wednesday, November 4, at 5:30 p.m. at the Tennessee Williams Theatre on CFK's Key West Campus. Brimhall will present a live reading of her work and take questions from the audience. The event is free for all attendees. 

Brimhall is a professor of creative writing at Kansas State University. She is the author of five poetry collections, including Love Prodigal and the recently released essay collection, The Grief Artist. Her poems have appeared in The New Yorker, The Nation, The New Republic, Poetry, The New York Times Magazine, and The Atlantic. She has received fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, the National Park Service, and the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, as well as a fellowship from Purdue University Libraries' Special Collections to study the lost poetry drafts of Amelia Earhart.

Launched in 2019, CFK Poetics connects both students and the Keys’ community with nationally recognized poets, deepening awareness of and immersion in the humanities in ways that are relevant today. Visiting poets share their work and engage in conversation with students and the public. Past featured poets include presidential inaugural poet Richard Blanco, Ross Gay, Kim Addonizio, Adrian Matejka, B.H. Fairchild, Barbara Hamby, David Kirby, Chelsea Rathburn, Blas Falconer, Lauren K. Alleyne, and Maria Zoccola.

Additional information about CFK Poetics can be found on the College’s website at www.cfk.edu/poetics.

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About The College of the Florida Keys

Founded in 1965 as Monroe Junior College, The College of the Florida Keys (CFK) has served the Florida Keys community for 60 years, providing accessible, high-quality education from Ocean Reef to Key West. CFK has expanded to offer a broad range of bachelor’s degrees, associate degrees, and certificates across several academic and workforce programs as well as high school opportunities and community enrichment courses and programs. For more information about CFK and its mission, visit: https://www.cfk.edu/discover/mission-vision-values/