Lafayette names Michele Battiste as new poet laureate

Battiste succeeds local poet ZBassSpeaks, who served about four years in the role.

Apr. 11, 2026 at 7:27pm

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A brightly colored, high-contrast silkscreen print of a typewriter repeated in a tight grid pattern, conceptually representing the creative energy and accessibility of poetry in the community.Lafayette's new poet laureate Michele Battiste aims to make poetry more accessible and integrated into the community through public events and workshops.Boulder Today

Lafayette has named Michele Battiste as the city's new poet laureate. Battiste succeeds local poet ZBassSpeaks, who served about four years in the role. Battiste's work focuses on landscape and grounding poetry in the physical world, and she aims to incorporate poetry into people's everyday lives through the position.

Why it matters

The poet laureate position in Lafayette is an important role that helps promote poetry and the arts in the local community. Battiste's appointment brings a fresh perspective and approach to the role, as she seeks to make poetry more accessible and integrated into people's lives.

The details

Battiste's work as a poet often returns to themes of landscape and the physical world, with a focus on using concrete imagery and sensory details to ground her poetry. She sees poetry as a way to tap into a childlike sense of wonder and belonging. Battiste has published several collections of poetry, including 'The Elsewhere Oracle' in 2025, which features a deck of tarot-like cards paired with poems. As Lafayette's new poet laureate, Battiste will be responsible for presenting poetry at city-sponsored events and providing public poetry workshops.

  • Battiste was named Lafayette's new poet laureate on Tuesday, April 11, 2026.
  • Battiste succeeds ZBassSpeaks, who served as poet laureate for about four years.

The players

Michele Battiste

The new poet laureate of Lafayette, Colorado. Battiste's work focuses on landscape and grounding poetry in the physical world, and she aims to make poetry more accessible to the community.

ZBassSpeaks

The previous poet laureate of Lafayette, who served in the role for about four years before being succeeded by Battiste.

Rachel Hanson

The director of Arts & Cultural Resources for the city of Lafayette, the department that funds the poet laureate position.

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What they’re saying

“We are grateful to ZBassSpeaks for their four-year tenure as Poet Laureate and excited to announce their successor, Michele Battiste. She is a talented and creative poet.”

— Rachel Hanson, Director of Arts & Cultural Resources, City of Lafayette

“Poetry is not just about emotion and introspections. It can be about research. It can be about how we interact with information, with current events, with what's going on in the world.”

— Michele Battiste, Lafayette Poet Laureate

What’s next

Battiste will be officially sworn in as Lafayette's new poet laureate at the next City Council meeting, where she will read a new poem she wrote for the occasion.

The takeaway

Battiste's appointment as Lafayette's new poet laureate brings a fresh, community-focused approach to the role, as she aims to make poetry more accessible and integrated into people's everyday lives through public events and workshops.