About
M.B. McLatchey is a widely-published poet and writer with a lifelong passion for literature, philosophy, ancient and modern languages, and the art of teaching. A recipient of several teaching and literary awards, including Harvard's Danforth Prize for Teaching, the American Poet Prize from the American Poetry Journal, the 2013 May Swenson Award for her debut poetry collection, The Lame God (Utah State Univ. Press) and Finalist in the Women’s Voices Competition for her book Advantages of Believing (Finishing Line Press), she is currently serving as one of Florida’s Poet Laureates for Volusia County and as Arts & Wellness Ambassador for the Atlantic Center for the Arts in New Smyrna Beach, Florida. In 2017, she was featured by the Association of Writers & Writing Programs in their Spotlight for Writers-to-Watch.
M.B.'s most recent book, Beginner's Mind (Regal House Publishing - May 20 21), is a creative nonfiction work that addresses the question, "How do we want teachers to educate our children?"
M.B. earned her graduate degree in Comparative Literature at Harvard University, her Master of Art in Teaching at Brown University, her B.A. from Williams College, and an MFA in Poetry from Goddard College. She lives with her husband on the Atlantic coast of Florida and is Professor of Classics at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.
Featured Work
Beginner's Mind

For parents of young children, their teachers, homeschooling parents, teachers in training, and all adults interested in discovering a more loving way for children to blossom in school, Beginner's Mind is a how-to book that describes teaching the way we so passionately want it for our children. Told through the eyes of a ten-year-old who, in real life, did go from shipyard town to Harvard University, Beginner's Mind gently answers the question, "How do we want teachers to teach, inspire, and guide our children?"
Other Works
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Advantages of Believing
2015
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The Lame God (Utah State University Press)
2013
Awards and Recognition
- American Poet Prize (American Poetry Journal); May Swenson Award for The Lame God (Utah State Univ. Press); Annie Finch Prize; Editor's Prizes, FOLIO Journal and Spoon River Poetry Journal; Vachel Lindsay Award, Robert Frost Award.