WHEREAS, Courtney LeBlanc, the esteemed author of multiple full-length poetry collections, was selected as the third Arlington County poet laureate in 2023; and

WHEREAS, Courtney LeBlanc is the author of Beautiful & Full of Monsters, Exquisite Bloody, Beating Heart, and Her Whole Bright Life, for which she won the 2023 Jack McCarthy Book Prize; and

WHEREAS, Courtney LeBlanc is also the founder and editor-in-chief of Riot in Your Throat, an independent poetry press, and a fellow of the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts; and

WHEREAS, in her role as poet laureate, Courtney LeBlanc will work with Arlington Cultural Affairs to develop and facilitate public programming to make poetry more accessible by engaging with Arlington residents of all ages and backgrounds; and

WHEREAS, with her extensive body of work and experience in the literary realm, Courtney LeBlanc will serve as an outstanding ambassador for her fellow poets and work diligently to raise awareness of and appreciation for poetry in both written and spoken forms in the Arlington County community; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly hereby commend Courtney LeBlanc on the occasion of her selection as Arlington County poet laureate; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to Courtney LeBlanc as an expression of the General Assembly's admiration for her contributions to the literary arts.