Poetry to Bridge Generations
Poetry is the voice of the soul.
UNO and the Nebraska Writers Collective “Bridge the Gaps between Generations” with Poetry
Each year since 2009 the Intergenerational Poetry Contest helps to bridge the gap between the generations. Prizes are awarded for poems written by local youth and adults over 50; each contest entrant writes two poems, one about the experiences of being older than 50, and the other about being a teenager. In 2019 we added one more participation group to the contest - UNO and UNMC students ages 19-49. This culminates in a Winners Celebration to which all entrants are invited. Celebrants hear and discuss readings of the winning poems, chat informally about aging, enjoy refreshments, and the winners receive cash prizes.
This program is maintained by a partnership of the University of Nebraska at Omaha Department of Gerontology with public and private schools connected by the UNO Dual Enrollment Program and Service Learning Academy. The Omaha Public Libraries and the Nebraska Writers' Collective were UNO's founding community partners. The Nebraska Writers' Collective continues to partner with UNO to manage this event, and its CEO, Nebraska State Poet Matt Mason, advises the Committee, and serves as Master of Ceremonies at the annual celebration. Student members of the university chapter of Sigma Phi Omega (SPO), which is the national gerontology academic honor society, and the SPO faculty advisors coordinate the program.
