Mayor Martin Walsh and the Mayor’s Office of Arts and Culture announced this week that HOME, a new virtual program of poetry spearheaded by City of Boston Poet Laureate Porsha Olayiwola, will begin this weekend.

The series, presented by the Academy of American Poets and Haley House Bakery Cafe, will consist of monthly poetry readings, open mics, and workshops curated by Olayiwola and hosted by the poet and teaching artist Anthony Febo.

“Porsha has dedicated years to working with Boston youth, and has done an incredible job serving the City of Boston as Poet Laureate the past several years,” said Walsh in a press release.

“Her commitment to bringing our communities together is so valuable during this time, and we greatly appreciate her ongoing efforts to make Boston a place where everyone can express themselves creatively.”

HOME will include featured reader and brief open mic every first Friday followed by a writing workshop the following morning, starting Nov. 6. This series was supported by a grant through the Academy of American Poets Fellowship and will culminate in a poetry festival in Roxbury next June.

“The theme, HOME, is born out of our current space, time, crisis, and future-shaping,” said Olayiwola. “What does home mean? What isn’t home? Who is lacking home? Now that we are all home so much, how do we like our homes? Ourselves? Our families? What is home, in the literal and figurative sense? Is the body a type of home? How so? Is a poem a type of home? How do we integrate this into content and craft?”

“Porsha has had a huge impact on Boston’s arts community, and we were thrilled to see her work recognized by the Academy of American Poets through this fellowship,” said Kara Elliott-Ortega, Chief of Arts and Culture. “This is an important theme as we think through ways Boston can be more welcoming and reflective of the many communities that make up the city.”

The first poetry reading and open mic will be this Friday (Nov. 6) at 7:30 p.m. and the workshop will be on Saturday from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
November’s facilitator is former Boston Poet Laureate Danielle Legros Georges, and the theme is “The Language of Home.” Interested individuals can register for one or both events at boston.gov/poetry.