The Kingsley and Kate Tufts Poetry Awards are two American prizes located at Claremont Graduate University. These awards are given to poets for their collections of poetry written in English by citizens or legal residents of the United States.

The Kingsley Tufts Poetry Award is a $100,000 prize given to a poet who is still developing their career but has already published a collection of poems. This award is known as one of the highest-paying poetry prizes in the world.

The other award, the Kate Tufts Discovery Award, is given to a poet who shows real promise in their first published book of poetry. This award comes with a prize of $10,000.

History

Kingsley Tufts worked in high-level positions at shipyards in Los Angeles and wrote poetry in his free time. His poems were published in well-known magazines such as The New Yorker, Esquire, and Harper's.

After Kingsley passed away in 1991, his wife, Kate, sold their home and most of their possessions to create a fund to support poets. In 1993, she used this money to start the Kingsley Tufts Poetry Award at Claremont Graduate University in California.

The award was first given as a $50,000 prize. Over time, the amount increased as the fund grew. It is meant for poets who are not just starting out but have not yet reached the top of their careers.

Kate Tufts had no connection to Claremont Graduate University before meeting its president, John Maguire. After visiting the campus, she believed the university was the best place to house the award.

Unlike many literary prizes, which are given to poets who have already achieved great success, the Kingsley Tufts Award honors poets while also giving them financial support to continue their work.

Kate Tufts explained that she wanted the award to help poets "focus on their writing without worrying about paying bills."

In 1994, one year after starting the Kingsley Tufts Poetry Award, Kate Tufts created another prize called the Kate Tufts Discovery Award. It began with a $5,000 prize and later increased to $10,000.

Kate Tufts passed away in June 1997 at the age of 86. Although she did not live to see her awards grow into some of the most important poetry prizes in the world, she was proud of creating them.

Doug Anderson, who won the Kate Tufts Discovery Award in 1995, recalled meeting Kate. He said she entered a room at Claremont Graduate University complaining about not being allowed to smoke. She then looked at Tom Lux, the Kingsley Tufts Award winner that year, and Doug. She said, "You don’t know how glad I am that this year’s awards were given to a couple of really disreputable poets."

Judging

Both awards have two stages of judging. In the first stage, a group of three judges reviews the about 400 total applications received for both awards. These judges then send the finalists to the second stage of judging.

The second stage is led by five judges who are respected members of the American poetry community and represent different parts of that community.

The final judges for the 2025 Kingsley and Kate Tufts Poetry Awards are:

The final judges for the 2020 Kingsley and Kate Tufts Poetry Awards are:

The final judges for the 2019 Kingsley and Kate Tufts Poetry Awards are:

The final judges for the 2017 Kingsley and Kate Tufts Poetry Awards are:

The final judges for the 2012 Kingsley and Kate Tufts Poetry Awards are:

The preliminary judges for the 2012 competition include:

Submission requirements/deadlines

Submissions must be sent every year on July 1. To qualify, the work must have been published during the previous year, from July 1 to June 30. Items such as manuscripts, CDs, and chapbooks are not accepted.

Awards ceremony

Award winners are announced in February after the July deadline. The ceremony where the awards are presented takes place in April, which is National Poetry Month. This event is held on the Claremont Graduate University Campus, and winners must accept their award in person. Distinguished speakers at the Awards Ceremony have included Kathy Bates in 2002, Leonard Nimoy in 2007, and Maxine Hong Kingston in 2012.

Restrictions

A single work can be entered for either award just one time. However, a winner of the Kate Tufts Discovery Award may enter another work in a future year for the Kingsley Tufts Poetry Award.

The winner of the Kingsley Tufts Poetry Award must spend one week at Claremont Graduate University to give lectures and read poetry in Claremont and other areas of Los Angeles.

The poet must be an American citizen or a legal resident in the United States.