Dan Masterson of Pearl River and a Rockland Community College English professor is Rockland County’s first poet laureate.
The position is through 2011.
Rockland County Executive C. Scott Vanderhoef and its Legislature Chairwoman Harriet Cornell made the announcement at a ceremony held on Feb. 24.
For the past 45 years, Masterson has included numerous poetry courses
and workshops in his curriculum. He has given more than 1,000 readings, lectures and seminars on the national poetry circuit.
An honorary job, the poet laureate will conduct readings for county events. As first poet laureate, Masterson will help determine the protocol to be used to establish future poet laureates.
“We are thrilled to welcome and congratulate Dan Masterson as Rockland”™s
first poet laureate,” said Vanderhoef. “With a love and passion for poetry, he has encouraged many and will continue to have a lasting impact on them.”
Masterson is the recipient of the State University of New York Chancellor”™s Award for Excellence in Teaching, two Pushcart Prizes, along with the Bullis, Borestone, and Fels national poetry prizes. He is the author of four published books, “On Earth as It Is”; “Those Who Trespass”; “All Things, Seen and Unseen”; and “World Without End.”
Masterson”™s work has appeared in various publications including Esquire and
The New Yorker.
Cliff L. Wood, president of Rockland Community College, said, “The
College is proud to have world-renowned poet Dan Masterson as a member
of our faculty. He has inspired decades of students, from our honors
students who have gone on to the Ivy League, to those who simply needed
to learn the fine art of expression.”
