Nationality American Alma mater University of Michigan | Occupation Poet Known for Poetry | |
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Michelle Regalado Deatrick is an American poet, community advocate, and politician from Michigan. She has won multiple writing awards, including both Winner and First Runner Up in the 2012 Chautauqua Poetry Contest. She actively maintains a blog (Word Garden) about poetry, the environment, and the 80-acre farm and native prairie she lives on and cares for. Her work has also appeared in the American Literary Review, Southern Poetry Review, and Crab Creek Review. Previously, her fiction was featured in Best New American Voices 2006.
In January, 2017, Deatrick helped organise Women's March in Ann Arbor, Michigan as a part of the Women's March that took place all over the world. More than 11,000 people gathered at the University of Michigan Diag and marched through Downtown Ann Arbor.
In 2016, Deatrick ran successfully as a Democrat for the Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners in the mostly rural 2nd district. She was also elected to the Democratic National Committee. Deatrick's website indicates her strong support for small farms, renewable energy, and veterans' services. She holds a BA from Wesleyan University, a Master's Degree in Education Policy and Administration from Harvard, and an MFA from the University of Michigan. She was on staff for the Bernie Sanders presidential campaign in Michigan as Special Projects Director, and also spent time in Kenya, working for the Peace Corps. She teaches poetry workshops privately and for the University of Michigan's continuing studies program.
In January 2015, Deatrick won an Honorable Mention in The 38th New Millennium Awards for her poetry.
In 2014, Deatrick was heavily involved with Michigan small farm rights, in particular advocating for full Right to Farm protection for non-commercial farms and farms in transitional agricultural areas.