In July 2018, Kurt McInnis, Assistant Professor of English, attended the Florida Master Teacher Seminar in Pensacola, where he met Jamey Jones, Pensacola State College English professor and Poet Laureate of Northwest Florida. Several poetry-themed conversations ensued, and Mr. McInnis, encouraged by Mr. Jones’ enthusiasm, set out to create a poetry scene for Chipola College community. The first outgrowth of that literary enterprise was the first Chipola Poetry Café, held on April 9, 2019.

Chipola’s Literature/Language Department, Honors Program, and Phi Theta Kappa joined together to make the event a rousing success. Appropriately, Jamey Jones was its special guest speaker, and 13 other poets read their original works. The Café is now a yearly event, occurring each April, which is National Poetry Month. For more information or to participate, contact Kurt McInnis at mcinnisk@chipola.edu.