Jake Skeets awarded $50,000 poet laureate fellowship
Courtesy | Deanna Dent
Jake Skeets
WINDOW ROCK
Jake Skeets, the Navajo Nation poet laureate from Vanderwagen, New Mexico, has been awarded a $50,000 fellowship from the Academy of American Poets to support the Saad Prize and related public programming.
Skeets is Tsi’naajinii and born for Tábąąhá. His maternal grandfather is Táchii’nii and his paternal grandfather is Tó Dík’ǫ́zhí.
The academy named Skeets among 22 poets laureate selected for its 2026 Poet Laureate Fellowships. Each will receive $50,000 for a public poetry project.
Skeets, the third Navajo Nation poet laureate, is serving a 2025-27 term. He is the author of two poetry collections, Eyes Bottle Dark with a Mouthful of Flowers, published in 2019, and Horses, published in 2026. His first collection was selected for the National Poetry Series and received the Kate Tufts Discovery Award. His honors also include an American Book Award and a 2020 Whiting Award.
To read the full article, please see the Aug. 20, 2026, edition of the Navajo Times.
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