A hands‑on event bringing the campus and broader community together through the art of papermaking.
by Fabiola M. Martinez Del Valle
The English Department is proud to celebrate Octavia Ikard, a Creative Writing major recently named Madison’s Youth Poet Laureate for 2025–2026. Their poetry is rooted in personal history, community reflection, and a deep commitment to storytelling. As they begin their term, Octavia brings a voice shaped by experience, empathy, and the rhythm of the women around them.
“Being Madison’s Youth Poet Laureate is a position that I hold dearly,” Octavia says, “and I intend to utilize my position to give a voice to the city of Madison and also be a learner of the local communities here.” Since moving to Madison, they have immersed themself in the city’s culture, navigating its complexities and uncovering stories often overlooked. “So many people from the city pointed me to people and places of Madison that are usually overlooked due to the underprivileged populations and history of racial discrimination and redlining,” they explain. Their poetry seeks to shed light on these spaces, honoring what they have learned from them.
Octavia’s creative work is shaped by their experience in the English Department. “The UW Madison’s Creative Writing Department is packed with some heavy hitters and sharp pens,” they say. In her first year, they studied with Natasha Oladokun and took “Plot and Plantation” with Professor Kristina Huang. “Her classes supplemented by my other English literature class allowed me to expand on parts of my identity and history I had a hard time navigating and discussing,” Octavia reflects. They look forward to continuing their studies and absorbing more of what the program has to offer.
Their inaugural reading as Youth Poet Laureate took place on September 16 at the Madison Municipal Building, where they shared the stage with local poets and city leaders. “Several older Black women, who had heard my poetry for the first time, were moved by my performance,” they recall. “Their reassurances and compliments warmed me up inside. I felt grateful to them that something in my work was able to represent them.”
Octavia’s poetry is a tribute to the women in her life and the broader community of Black women whose stories they carry. “My work is not unique in any form,” they say. “There are many Black women who work in retail, many Black women who scrub down counters at fast food restaurants, many Black women that take the bus with books stuffed in their bags, many Black women that teach at schools to help children, and so on. I am just one of many Black women and that is what makes my work so special.”
They describe themself as the storyteller of her family, guided by the voices and memories of the women around them.
“I listen to the hearts of the women around me and let their rhythm guide my pencil,” they say. “I write about my mother walking over glass with her twin sister in the eighties. I write about my grandmother, who raised twelve brothers alone at age eight. I study her feet and hands, and her scrapbooks filled with dreams of who she could have been. I let their anger flow through my words and release it with every performance. My writing shows my love for myself and the Black women around me, including those in Madison.”
“Every day I challenge myself to answer why I write,” Octavia says. “So far, I can say this: I am the storyteller of my family.” We are proud to celebrate their voice, their vision, and the stories they continues to share.