2026 English Student Poetry Contest Winners

KENNESAW, Ga. | Apr 9, 2026

In honor of National Poetry Month, we're proud to feature the winners of this year's KSU English Student Poetry Contest! Four poems from current KSU English students were selected by a review team of department poets. Many thanks to all who submitted their work for consideration, and a special thanks to this year's review team: faculty and student representatives from The Headlight Review, Waymark, the Writing Center's "For Better or For Verse" Poetry Club, and faculty poets Khalil Elayan and Heather Voraphongphibul.

First Place: "hin-mu-ri-dil" by Mark Trager

Mark Trager is a KSU graduate student currently finalizing his capstone in the KSU MAPW program with a focus in Creative Writing. He has published a book of poetry called Shine in 2022 and both his poetic and prose work have been published in anthologies and online journals. You can read more of Mark’s writing and connect with him at MarkTrager.com. He and his wife Su reside in Canton, GA. All glory to Yeshua the Messiah and Savior of all. Luke 6:40.

Second Place: "The dead are good at boundaries" by Nya Roden 

Nya Roden is a writer based in Rome, Georgia. An MAPW student, she currently serves as Vice President of KSU’s newly minted Playwright Club, Exit, Pursued by Bear. She is developing an untitled animated film for her capstone and looks forward to sharing it next spring. Follow along and connect with her on Instagram @nyajroden.

Third Place: "Where I'm From" by Sydnee Newsome 

Sydnee Elise Newsome is an aspiring writer hailing from Snellville, Georgia. She is pursuing her master's degree in professional writing. She works as a managing editor for Kennesaw State's English department's publication, The Headlight Review. A lover of poetry and fiction, writing is her purpose in life, and she strives to share her creativity with those around her.

Social media sites:

Instagram: sydnee (@syd0nit)

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61552857673612&mibextid=wwXIfr 

First Honorable Mention: "What Makes a Good Book" by Hunter Owens

Hunter Owens is an English-Education major at KSU. He loves finding the beauty in the mundane, along with reading, and other art forms.

Instagram: Hunter_owens15

Second Honorable Mention: "When the Earth Can No Longer Hold Us" by Emily Katherine

I am an undergraduate majoring in English Education, set to graduate in 2027 and earn my certification to teach grades 6-12. I am passionate about writing poetry and spending time in Nature (with a capital N). I hope to keep writing for myself as a hobby and professionally so I can show my students that anyone can be a writer.

Read their poems:

  • hin-mu-ri-dil

    she combs her fingers through then

          stops

    says something in her native tongue

          plucks

    beautiful lyrical giggle

     

    has this been that hard on you, nawhui sarang?

     

    splinters and pangs

       cracks crease my brow

        her smile flambé

        i caress her bandages with tired fingers

    gently

      like walking on

        thin ice.

         silence.

     our fingers continue

              her’s seeks

                   seeks

         finally finds

    another

       stops

           plucks.

    mine glides like

                cat-hair

          on hardwood floor

      blown by

              the AC.

     

    Silence.

     

     

     

     

  • My
    Subconscious
    Called
    My
    Dead
    Father’s
    Phone
    And
    He
    Had
    Enough
    Good
    Sense
    To
    Not
    Answer
    3:34pm
    Were
    His
    Working
    Hours

  • My father was delivered into the rough hands of his mother and the gentle spirit of his father
    His backyard was adorned with dandelions by day and firefly swarms at night
    Sundays are full of old hymns, church ladies with funny hats, and peppermints from a purse
    While he spent afternoons immersed in the TV, his mother spent drowned in regret
    Where he felt the burden of being her child, he swore his child wouldn’t feel the same

    My mother was delivered into the shadow of a father and the vanity of an unwilling mother
    She had a yard bursting with towering fig trees and alluring daylilies to accompany
    Sundays spent in her grandma’s tiny living room as she gently braided her hair
    Days she spent under the fig trees’ shade, her mother spent in a grievance of her “stolen” youth
    When she felt the burden of being her child, she promised to break the cycle

    I was delivered into the tenderness of my mother’s touch and the loving embrace of my father
    My backyard was full of towering pine trees and adorned by beautiful stars at night
    Mornings spent with my mother as she brushed my hair and hummed the lullaby I adored
    Evenings spent wiggling in anticipation of hearing my father come home from work
    Where my parents felt the absence of love, I felt an abundance of adoration

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