According to the WPLC website:
The Wisconsin Poet Laureate Commission is comprised of volunteers who perform several functions crucial to the maintenance of the Wisconsin Poet Laureate position: it selects a new Laureate every two years, publicizes the position, administers the program’s finances, including the raising of funds to support the Poet Laureate’s expenses, and helps connect the Poet Laureate with the people of Wisconsin.
The Wisconsin Poet Laureate program was originally created by an executive order of Wisconsin Governor Tommy Thompson in 2000. After the $2,000 annual budget for the laureateship was eliminated by Governor Scott Walker, the Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts and Letters announced its stewardship of the program to ensure its survival. Today, the position of Wisconsin Poet Laureate is kept alive by individual donations, and by financial support from member organizations
Our 2023 Poet Laureate:
Nicholas Gulig is a Thai-American poet from Wisconsin. A 2011 Fulbright Fellow, Gulig has received numerous other accolades for his work including the Rushkin Art Club Poetry Award, the Black Warrior Review Poetry Prize, the Grist ProForma Award, and the CSU Open Book Poetry Prize. Currently, he works as an Associate Professor at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and lives with his wife and two daughters in Fort Atkinson.
Our past Poet Laureates have been:
Dasha Kelly Hamilton, from 2021-2022
Margaret Rozga from 2019-2020
Karla Huston from 2017-2018
Kimberly Blaeser from 2015-2016
Max Garland from 2013-2014
Bruce Dethlefsen from 2010-2012
Marylynn L. Taylor from 2009 to 2010
Denise Sweet from 2005-2008
Nicholas Gulig is a Thai-American poet from Wisconsin. A 2011 Fulbright Fellow, Gulig has received numerous other accolades for his work including the Rushkin Art Club Poetry Award, the Black Warrior Review Poetry Prize, the Grist ProForma Award, and the CSU Open Book Poetry Prize. Currently, he works as an Associate Professor at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and lives with his wife and two daughters in Fort Atkinson.
Our past Poet Laureates have been:
Dasha Kelly Hamilton, from 2021-2022
Margaret Rozga from 2019-2020
Karla Huston from 2017-2018
Kimberly Blaeser from 2015-2016
Max Garland from 2013-2014
Bruce Dethlefsen from 2010-2012
Marylynn L. Taylor from 2009 to 2010
Denise Sweet from 2005-2008