Angela (Angie) Trudell Vasquez, a second and third generation Mexican-American originally from Iowa, served as the city of Madison Poet Laureate from 2020 to early 2024. The first Latina to hold the position she received her MFA in poetry from the Institute of American Indian Arts in 2017. In Light, Always Light, her third collection of poetry came out in 2019, and her fourth, My People Redux, was published in 2022 both from Finishing Line Press. My People Redux won first place in the Wisconsin Fellowship of Poet’s annual chapbook contest in 2023 among many other accolades. During her poet laureate tenure, she started the first Youth Poet Laureate in the state of Wisconsin for the youth in Madison. Angie is also a Macondo Fellow, was a Ruth Lilly Fellow as an undergrad, and the former Chair of the Wisconsin Poet Laureate Commission. Her poems, short stories, and essays have appeared in print and online for the last thirty years.
