Announcing the Altadena Poets Laureate for 2026-2028: Shahé Mankerian & Rhonda Mitchell
On April 25, the new Altadena Poets Laureate for 2026-2028 were announced: Shahé Mankerian & Rhonda Mitchell. As Editor-in-Chief, Shahé will be responsible for the Altadena Poetry Review, and Rhonda will be Poet Laureate for Community Events, heading up workshops & readings.
Shahé Mankerian is the principal and 8th grade English teacher at St. Gregory Hovsepian School in Pasadena, California, and serves as Director of Mentorship at the International Armenian Literary Alliance (IALA). With a rich background in education and the arts, he previously co-directed the Los Angeles Writing Project and received the BRAVO Award from the Los Angeles Music Center for his innovative contributions to arts education.
In 2021, Mankerian’s debut poetry collection, History of Forgetfulness, was published by Fly on the Wall Press in the United Kingdom. History of Forgetfulness (2021) chronicles a childhood in Lebanon during its civil war. Both The Los Angeles Review and The Los Angeles Review of Books have highlighted his work for its blend of innocence and intense brutality. The collection was a semifinalist for the Khayrallah Prize and a finalist for several notable awards, including the Bibby First Book Competition, the Crab Orchard Poetry Open Competition, the Julie Suk Award, the Quercus Review Press Poetry Book Award, and the White Pine Press Poetry Prize. His poems have appeared widely in literary journals.
Rhonda Mitchell is a writer rooted in the stories and rhythms of Leimert Park and the Crenshaw District, where she grew up. She writes because she believes literacy is an act of personal and community liberation: that when people have access to language and story, they are better equipped to understand themselves and advocate for their communities.
A 30-year veteran of public service and a member of the Anansi Writers Workshop, she has spent her life at the intersection of literacy, the arts, and community. That commitment continues to shape every page she writes. Her poetry has appeared in Voices of Leimert Park, and her personal story in Essence Magazine. She is now completing a hybrid collection of short stories and poems drawn from her years growing up in South LA. The collection braids together place, memory, language, and belonging, into a portrait of a community that has always known its own worth.
An immense thank you to our 2024-2026 Altadena Poets Laureate Sehba Sarwar and Lester Graves Lennon for their efforts and dedication to promote poetry and literature during such a devastating time in our community’s history.