30 Years of Distinguished Programming

HoCoPoLitSo, more formally known as the Howard County Poetry and Literature Society, completes thirty years of distinguished public programming in literature, having contributed significantly to the cultural life of a burgeoning community in three decades of rapid development, population growth, and technological change.

Now, as its founding generation retires, HoCoPoLitSo looks to sustain and expand its rich legacy by forming a closer alliance with what has become the town’s central cultural institution, Howard Community College. The college will provide new space for operations and an administrative management team composed of current Deputy Director Pamela Simonson and new board member, Dr. Tara Hart, chair of the English/World Languages division at the college, as managing director. The team will continue to work closely, in tandem with the board of directors, to provide the high-quality programs and events that the community has enjoyed for thirty years and to enlarge the audience for the appreciation of contemporary poets and writers.

Elected to HoCoPoLitSo’s board of directors in the summer 2004 were poet Michael Collier, treasurer Kathleen Larson, and Tara Hart in the role of designated HCC representative. They join longstanding members Ellen Conroy Kennedy, founder; David H. Barrett, board chair; Catherine McLoughlin-Hayes, vice-chair and chair of the Irish Evening; Lucille Clifton, artistic director; Virginia Pausch, high school liaison; Timothy Singleton, recording secretary; and Morris Range and Patty Rouse.

Past Events