National Youth Poet Laureate Evan Wang, center, is recognized during a May 15, 2025 Montgomery County Board of Commissioners meeting. Also pictured, from left, is Montgomery County Commissioners’ Vice Chairwoman Jamila Winder and Chairman Neil Makhija. (Credit: Rachel Ravina – MediaNews Group)
Upper Merion High School senior Evan Wang was recognized Thursday by Montgomery County leaders for creative talents that earned him the designation of 2025 national youth poet laureate.
“Thank you so much for having me. This is such an honor,” Wang said at the county board of commissioners meeting.
Wang, of King of Prussia, is the country’s ninth youth poet laureate, participating in the program cultivated by the New York City-based Urban Word NYC. Wang will soon graduate and attend Harvard University this fall. Wang read an original poem titled “New Tradition” when addressing county commissioners during the Thursday morning board meeting.
He was initially named Montgomery County’s inaugural youth poet laureate in 2022 after the program was launched under the umbrella of the Montgomery County Poet Laureate program, and he went on to serve as the ninth Northeast Regional Youth Poet Laureate, according to a statement from the Montgomery County Youth Poet Laureate Program.
Wang honed his craft by attending writers workshops at the Iowa Writers Studio and Ohio-based Canon College. He also took his talents to Washington, D.C., visiting the White House, and addressing members of the U.S. Department of Education. Locally, Wang also oversaw writers’ workshops and organized open mic nights for other youth poets and cultural organizations.
Wang was most inspired by his predecessor, Amanda Gorman, who was the nation’s premier youth poet laureate. She read “The Hill We Climb” at former President Joe Biden’s inauguration in 2021.
“She’s the reason why I wanted to become a youth poet laureate,” he told MediaNews Group in an interview last year, adding “what a legacy.”
Wang was selected among four finalists vying for the 2025 title. They debuted their performance pieces earlier this month during the National Youth Poet Laureate Commencement at Hunter College’s Roosevelt House Public Policy Institute in New York City, according to the Montgomery County Youth Poet Laureate Program.
“Throughout this next year during my term, I’ll be advocating for various causes that I’m passionate about, such as public health, racial understanding and democracy, while also of course leading a bunch of youth poets to strive for civic engagement, [and] also literacy,” Wang said.
