January 13, 2026
Provided image/Free Library of Philadelphia
Malaya Ulan, named Philadelphia's youth poet laureate in 2024, is one of four finalists for the national title. The winner will be crowned at an April ceremony in Nebraska.
A former student at Science Leadership Academy at Beeber could become the country's youth poet laureate.
Malaya Ulan, a senior in high school, is one of four finalists for the national title. Ulan recently won the Northeast regional category, advancing with Chloe Chou of California, Rishi Janakiraman of North Carolina and Daniel Somotochukwu Umemezie of Iowa. They will all perform at an April 25 ceremony in Omaha, Nebraska, where the U.S. youth poet laureate will be crowned.
The Free Library of Philadelphia named Ulan the city's youth poet laureate in 2024. She was a junior at the Science Leadership Academy at Beeber at the time. According to her Instagram account, she has since moved to Miami for her senior year.
Along with poetry, Ulan dabbles in film, painting and dance. She has frequently collaborated with her mother, fellow artist Anito Gavino, including on the Philadelphia Fringe Festival production "Special Topics" in 2024. The teen has also performed at the Barnes Foundation, Asian Arts Initiative and Painted Bride Art Center. She delivered a TED Talk on growing up a first generation Filipino American at a University of Pennsylvania conference last March.
Her poetry collection, "Ulan: When my tears turn into roses," debuted in 2022.
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