You don’t have to be a poet to take part in Poetry Week.

Poetry Week will occur next week, beginning with Poetry Performances from poets Adam Gottlieb and Parneshia Jones, the ETHS Slam Team, and Kuumba Lynx, who are two-time Louder than a Bomb winners, on Monday during periods 1, 2, 3, 7, 8, and 9 in the Upstairs Theater.

“Our plan is we bring in a couple of poets to present their works and excite the week with creativity, and then have writing workshops for which teachers can sign up,” said Shari Iverson, Instructional and Informational Specialist. “Our offering something during this week gives the teachers an opportunity to have a fun way to include poetry in their curriculum. “

The Poetry Performance is followed with several writing workshops with Jones, Gottlieb, and Rachel Jamison Webster, a Northwestern University professor and poet in the MRC on Tuesday and Wednesday, during all periods except 5^th on Tuesday and 4^th on Wednesday.

On Thursday, during periods 4, 5, and 6, the MRC will host an Open Mic emceed by Gottlieb. In addition, a poetry reading from selected ETHS and Northwestern students hosted by Jones and Webster will occur on April 15 at 6 p.m.

This is the 12th annual Poetry Week at ETHS. It is a part of National Poetry Month, which occurs in April. The theme for this year’s week, developed with collaboration from Janine Peltier’s Creative Writing class, is “Ink is Forever.”

“We feel like poetry is kind of a way to express yourself that touches everyone on all levels; there’s so many kinds of poetry that you can use, whether it’s classical, spoken word or even in song,” said Iverson. “Poetry is also universal; you can find it anywhere in the world.”