Ellen Bryant Voigt, the poet and author of nine collections of poetry, died last week at the age of eighty-two. A finalist for both a National Book Award and a National Book Critics Circle Award, as well as a MacArthur Fellow, Voigt was a central figure in American poetry for more than five decades. Her work combined formal precision with psychological depth, tracing the intricacies of family life, rural experience, and moral attention. She also transformed the teaching of the art: in 1976, she founded the nation’s first low-residency MFA program for writers, at Goddard College, later relocating it to Warren Wilson College, where she mentored generations of writers. In TYR today, her former students and colleagues—including Catherine Barnett, Victoria Chang, Carl Phillips, and TYR’s executive editor, Meghan O’Rourke—reflect on Voigt as poet and teacher. Follow the link in our bio to read more. 📷 Ellen Bryant Voigt, pictured here in 2015, when she was awarded a MacArthur Fellowship. Credit: John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.