The Humanities Institute is proud to present The Seventeenth Annual Morton Marcus Poetry Reading featuring California Poet Laureate, Lee Herrick. Lee Herrick is the first California Poet Laureateto be reappointed to a second term. He is the author of four books, most recently In Praise of Late Wonder: New and Selected Poems (2024). He co-edited The World I Leave You: Asian American Poets on Faith and Spirit and the AGNI Portfolio of Adoptee Writing. His writing appears in anthologies such as Here: Poems for the Planet, with an introduction by the Dalai Lama; Indivisible: Poems of Social Justice, with an introduction by Common; and Dear America: Letters of Hope, Habitat, Defiance, and Democracy, among others. Born in Daejeon, Korea and adopted to the United States at ten months old, he lives with his wife and daughter, and teaches in Fresno, California. Poet Gary Young, will host the program, and the evening will include an announcement of the winner of the Morton Marcus Poetry Prize (recipient receives a $1,000 prize).

Registration coming soon!

This event is a part of the Fall UCSC Living Writers course, which features poets, novelists, academics, curators, and artists in conversation with one another, in person, across genre and media.

Purchase both Lee Herrick and Gary Young’s works at: www.bookshopsantacruz.com

Parking Information

The Cultural Center Merrill College is located in Merrill College, in the northeast corner of the campus core. Those walking or arriving by Metro bus or campus shuttle can take the steep path heading northeast from the Crown/Merrill bus stop.

For those driving from the Main Entrance, stay on Coolidge Drive. Shortly after Coolidge turns left and becomes McLaughlin Drive, turn right at the sign for Merrill College. At the top of the hill, veer right. There are ParkMobile parking spaces along the left side of the lot, and parking for “A,” “B,” and “C” permits along the right. There are two accessible parking spaces if you turn left at the top of the hill and two more if you turn right. Parking attendants will be on site to issue parking permits to event attendees.

The Morton Marcus Poetry Reading honors poet, teacher, and film critic Morton Marcus (1936–2009). Marcus, a nationally acclaimed poet, called Santa Cruz his home for more than fifty years. This annual poetry series continues Mort’s tradition of bringing acclaimed poets to Santa Cruz County, acknowledges the significant role poetry has played in our community’s history, and works to maintain poetry’s influence in our county’s culture. Marcus was the 1999 Santa Cruz County Artist of the Year and a recipient of the 2007 Gail Rich Award. Among his published works are eleven volumes of poetry, including The Santa Cruz Mountain Poems, Pages from a Scrapbook of Immigrants, Moments Without Names, Shouting Down the Silence, Pursuing the Dream Bone and The Dark Figure In The Doorway; a novel, The Brezhnev Memo; and a literary memoir, Striking Through the Masks. He taught English and Film at Cabrillo College for thirty years, was the co-host of the radio program, The Poetry Show, and was the co-host of the television film review show, Cinema Scene. Learn more at: www.mortonmarcus.com

The Morton Marcus Poetry Archive is in the Special Collections & Archives at UC Santa Cruz. Mort’s personal papers, manuscripts, and recordings reflect his legacy as a poet and educator, and his collection of poetry books, broadsides, literary magazines and correspondence with other poets and writers illuminate his deep involvement in, and passion for, the literary art of poetry.

Organizing Committee: Farnaz Fatemi, Donna Mekis, Teresa Mora, Mark Ong, Maggie Paul, Irena Polić, David Sullivan, Jennifer Tseng, and Gary Young

Morton Marcus Memorial Poetry Contest: Every year, the annual reading coincides with the The Morton Marcus Memorial Poetry Prize, a national poetry contest which honors Morton Marcus, “whose life and work inspired the writing of many students, friends, and emerging poets.” The contest is hosted by The Hive Poetry Collective. The Hive is a group of Santa Cruz poets creating a weekly radio show and live poetry events featuring a diverse roster of poets and seeks to bring a diverse community together in appreciation of all kinds of poetry by all kinds of people. This year’s contest will be judged by Brynn Saito. For more information visit: https://hivepoetry.org/morton-marcus-prize/

Support Poetry in Santa Cruz: The Annual Morton Marcus Poetry Reading is made possible due to campus and community co-sponsorships and generous contributions from members of our community, like you. To ensure we can continue to offer this poetry reading free and open to the public in honor and memory of Morton Marcus, and to have our lives deeply enriched by exceptional poetry, please consider making a gift to The Morton Marcus Poetry Reading Fund: thi.ucsc.edu/projects/morton-marcus-poetry-reading.

This event is presented by: The Humanities Institute and co-sponsored by Ow Family Properties; Donna F. Mekis; Side By Side Studios; Bookshop Santa Cruz; Cabrillo College English Department; and the following departments at UC Santa Cruz: Special Collections and Archives, Merrill College, Cowell College, and Porter College.

If you have disability-related needs, please contact us at thi@ucsc.edu or call 831-459-1274 by November 12. 2026.