The Teen Poetry Fellowship at the MFA is a unique opportunity for high school students in grades 9–12 to explore the connection between visual art and the written word. Inspired by our global collection spanning nearly 5,000 years of human creativity, the program invites 15 students to participate in a four-week paid poetry fellowship and workshop series.
Students work with MFA educators and local poet mentors to study artists and artworks in the galleries, inspiring their own creative writing and culminating in an original publication and spoken-word performance at the MFA on Thursday, January 29 at 6 pm. Each student who completes the fellowship will earn a $500 scholarship in support of their creative work and future goals.
This workshop will be led by Denzel Johnson-Green, a poet and photographer living in St. Petersburg, Florida. He’s the recipient of the Roy Peter Clark Literary Prize and is the creator of the poetry journal, Neptune, which was nominated best literary journal in Creative Loafing. Since 2019, Denzel has been the host of a weekly poetry workshop and open mic called, Community Poetry, where everyday people can try strange and out of the box writing prompts and share poems they’ve found. His poems have been featured in Oddball Magazine, Saw Palm, Creative Pinellas' Art Coast Journal, Neptune, The Fantastic Other, and The Artisan. He has performed in and directed poetry readings at The Studio@620, Book+Bottle, Tombolo Books, The Museum of Fine Arts at St. Petersburg, and Florida Craft Art.
Teen Poetry Fellows must attend each of the following workshop dates:
- Session 1: Tuesday, January 6, 5 – 7:30 pm
- Session 2: Thursday, January 8, 5 – 7:30 pm
- Session 3: Tuesday, January 13, 5 – 7:30 pm
- Session 4: Thursday, January 15, 5 – 7:30 pm
- Session 5: Tuesday, January 20, 5 – 7:30 pm
- Session 6: Thursday, January 22, 5 – 7:30 pm
- Session 7: Tuesday, January 27, 5 – 7:30 pm
- Public Performance: Thursday, January 29 at 6 pm (students should arrive at the MFA no later than 5:30 pm)
To Apply:
Interested students should apply for the fellowship via the link below. Applications are due by 11:59 pm on December 28, 2025. Selected students must be able to attend all sessions of the workshop, including the public performance on Thursday, January 29. Transportation to and from the museum is not provided, but fellows will receive an additional $100 stipend to cover cost of gas, rideshares, public transportation, etc.
Applicants will be notified of their acceptance status by January 2.
Generous support for this project provided by The Queen’s Court, Inc.
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