Gerald Stern

Gerald Stern (February 22, 1925 - October 28, 2022) was an American poet, essayist and educator. He was the author of twenty collections of poetry and four books of essays. Stern taught literature and creative writing at Temple University, Indiana University of Pennsylvania, Raritan Valley Community College, and Iowa Writers' Workshop. 
From 2009, Stern was the distinguished poet-in-residence and a member of the faculty of Drew Universitys graduate program for a Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in poetry. In 2000, New Jersey Governor Christine Todd Whitman appointed Stern as the state's first poet laureate.
Stern's poetry was nominated for and honored with a number of awards. "Leaving Another Kingdom" (1990) was a finalist for the 1991 Pulitzer Prize for Poetry. "This Time: New and Selected Poems" (1998) won the National Book Award in 1998. "American Sonnets" (2002) was a finalist for the 2003 International Griffin Poetry Prize.
Praise for Stern's poetry came late in life. One reviewer called "Lucky Life", published when Stern was over 50, "a cornerstone in American poetry." He died in The Bronx, New York City when he was 97 years old.