Marvin Bell

Marvin Bell (born 3 August 1937 in Brooklyn, New York) is an American poet and teacher who was the first Poet Laureate of the State of Iowa.

Bell was born in New York City and raised in Center Moriches, Long Island. He earned his bachelor's degree from Alfred University, his master's degree from the University of Chicago, and an MFA from the University of Iowa Writers' Workshop.

He is the author of more than 16 books of poetry. Notable books of poetry including The Book of the Dead Man (Copper Canyon, 1994) and Ardor: The Book of the Dead Man, Vol. 2. (Copper Canyon, 1997)

Bell's second book, A Probable Volume of Dreams, was awarded the prestigious Lamont Poetry Selection of the Academy of American Poets in 1969. Other honors for his work include Guggenheim and NEA fellowships, and Fullbright appointments in Yugoslavia and Australia. In 2000 Bell was appointed as the first Poet Laureate for the state of Iowa.

Bell taught for many years at the Iowa Writers' Workshop as the Flannery O'Connor Professor of Letters. He currently is an emeritus faculty member. Over a long career Bell has held numerous visiting lectureships at universities, including Goddard College, Oregon State University, the University of Hawaii, and the University of Washington. He currently serves on the faculty of the Masters in Fine Arts in writing program at Pacific University in Oregon.

Bell's list of former students include Marilyn Chin, Rita Dove, Norman Dubie, James Galvin, Jorie Graham, Joy Harjo, David St. John, and James Tate.

Bell has written poems protesting the Afghanistan and Iraq wars and given readings for Poets Against War.

He currently lives in Port Townsend, Washington and Iowa City.

Honors

 * American Academy of Arts and Letters Award in Literature
 * Guggenheim and National Endowment for the Arts fellowships
 * Senior Fulbright appointments to Yugoslavia and Australia
 * Flannery O'Connor Professor of Letters at the University of Iowa
 * Iowa's first Poet Laureate
 * National Book Award Finalist
 * Lamont Poetry Selection of the Academy of American Poets