Poetry with Santa Barbara Poet Laureate, Sojourner Kincaid Rolle

Sojourner Kincaid Rolle is poet, playwright, an environmental educator and a peace activist. She is the current Poet Laureate of Santa Barbara, CA. (2015-2017). Her book of poems for young people, The “Mellow Yellow Global Umbrella” was published as an e-book and as an audio book by Lucky Penny Press (2013). Her other books include Common Ancestry (Millie Grazie Press, 1999) and Black Street, (Center for Black Studies Research – 2009). Her poems have appeared in the publications California Quarterly, Coffee Press, Squaw Review and others, and in the following anthologies: The Geography of Home (Heyday Books, 1999), Rivertalk 2000, Poetry Zone I, II & III, The Poetry of Peace (Capra Press), A Crow Black as the Sun (Green Poet Press, 2011) and “Corners of the Mouth: Celebrating 30 Years of the SLO Poetry Festival (2014 ). She has engaged young poets through her “Song of Place Poetry Project” and her work with City At Peace, Speak for the Creeks, the Annual Young Writers Poetry Contest and the MLK Poetry and Essay Contest. She hosts a monthly poetry event, The Poetry Zone, and for the past 13 years has organized an annual tribute to poetry icon Langston Hughes. Rolle is a two-time recipient of the California Arts Council’ Artist-in-Residence program and for eight years led poetry workshops in schools throughout the South County as a part of the Santa Barbara Public Library’s Elli program Sojourner Kincaid Rolle holds B.S.( UNC-Charlotte, 1978) in Criminal Justice with emphasis in Juvenile Delinquency and a J.D. (UC-Berkeley, 1981). She has taught creative writing through UCLA Extension in the California Arts In Corrections program(1992-1999) and African American Literature at UCSB(2007, 2009). She has been leading poetry workshops for young people in the schools and throughout the community since 1992. Rolle is the author of seven books of poetry and six plays. Her arts reviews and commentaries have appeared in local and regional publications. Links to additional articles, reviews, videoa, and recordings at http://sojournerthepoet.blogspot.com/