Jake Friedman

Jake Friedman (he/him) is a poet, editor, and culture worker. Before coming to Fort Collins, CO for his MFA in Poetry from Colorado State University, he spent ten years in Phoenix, AZ doing a variety of artistic and literary things–founding and directing a small press called Four Chambers, serving in multiple positions at the Virginia G. Piper Center for Creative Writing at Arizona State University, working at the City of Phoenix Office of Arts and Culture, moderating a weekly writing group, reading grants for the NEA and other funders, etc etc. He has also received a handful of small but noteworthy honors–a University and College Prize from the Academy of American Poets, scholarships from the Community of Writers, a finalist for the Just Buffalo Literary Fellowship, and a semi-finalist for the 92Y Discovery Contest. He is currently working on a manuscript of documentary poetry exploring a critical history of the American West, among other things. He has a job and earns money for his family. He lives down the street from Wolverine Farm with his partner, their two-and-half-year-old, and an old cat.

Goals as Poet Laureate

As Poet Laureate, my goal is to serve the community here in Fort Collins, CO, whatever that means. While I have a few desires or ideas–making the position official, applying to grants and getting resources, organizing a conference, doing some public / commissioned work, etc etc–I need you to tell me what to do. Send us an email at focopoetlaureate@gmail.com. 

Erica Reid

Erica Reid (she/her) is the author of Ghost Man on Second, winner of the Donald Justice Poetry Prize — Ghost Man, like most of her poetry, circles around ideas of belonging and estrangement, as she is never quite sure where she fits. Words you can count on finding in her poems: clock, key, rabbitbrush, daughter, teeth. Erica’s poems appear in Rattle, Cherry Tree, Colorado Review, and more, and she is the recipient of a 2026 Pushcart Prize. She earned her MFA at Western Colorado University, where she currently teaches Poetry and Nature Writing. ericareidpoet.com

Goal as Poet Laureate

 1. Bring poetry to spaces where poetry is not expected 

2. Amplify the local communities where poets & artists are already gathering 

3. Increase the creative & financial opportunities available to Fort Collins’ poets & writers