MELIDA RODAS
Melida Rodas, the Poet Laureate of Jersey City (2025-2026), has over twenty years of experience as an educator focused on empowering students through literacy and the arts. Her teaching methods embrace a wide range of literature that reflects the varied experiences of all students, fostering a classroom atmosphere that promotes open dialogue, mindfulness, and introspection. This NJCU alumna cultivates a passion for memoir and is a past Dodge Poetry Festival School Coordinator, New York City Poetry Festival Group Leader, and judge in the New Jersey Poetry Out Loud youth poetry competition.Â
Rodas’ leadership inspires students to see themselves as artists, critical thinkers, and engaged citizens of the world. Her devotion has earned her a myriad of awards and accolades, including the "Woman of Action Award" from Jersey City’s Office of Cultural Affairs, induction into the Bayonne High School Hall of Fame and The Shero Award by the Jersey City Women’s Advisory Board in 2025. She made history as Jersey City's first inaugural poet in 2013 and has been featured in anthologies alongside notable authors and lyricists such as Walt Whitman, Martin Espada, Bruce Springsteen, Woodie Guthrie, and Ezra Pound. Her writings on the immigrant experience have garnered recognition from SaveEllisIsland.org and have been published widely by publishing houses including Oxford University Press, Pearson Press, and The Feminist Press.Â
Melida is committed to arts advocacy and community engagement, serving on Jersey City The Arts Trust Fund Committee, a governing body that emphasizes diversity, equity, and inclusionary practices in art and culture planning. In this role, she champions arts organizations and creatives that enrich our cultural landscape and overall well-being, while also creating more opportunities for youth arts education.Â
In that spirit, this multidisciplinary artist, founded The Jersey City Poetry Festival (.org) a poetry festival that advocates for climate justice and explores the interconnection between the art of poetry and various other forms of self-expression. With this holistic approach, Rodas endeavors to illuminate the tapestry of human connection that transcends the boundaries of individual mediums.Â
Her life's work embraces the integration of literary works with technology and film, culminating in art installations and immersive experiences designed to galvanize viewers into action. Her visionary multimedia project, "Words for Change," was graced with a grant award from PROARTS and Sustainable Jersey, a testament to her impactful artistry. Most recently, her multimedia work was featured in Dense Magazine’s - Jersey Art Book Fair, at Mana Contemporary and she received critical acclaim for her work showcased at the international Color and Light Festival in partnership with Luma Festival. Melida's design included film, graphic design, and her poetry set to music by the international violinist,“Le Fiddler.” Her collaborations also include creating a projection mapping sequence for the song “Cafe Mars, “composed and accompanied by Grammy-winning Martha Mooke as well as performing with the New Jersey Symphony.  At this performance, Melida recited her poetry alongside “Strum,” written by Grammy-winning Jessie Montgomery.Â
Above all, she holds this truth close: "Lift as you climb." For every step she takes upward, her hand extends behind—to steady, to guide, to pull another forward. Her journey is not a solitary ascent, but one that carries others with her. Especially the unheard, the unseen, the silenced, the resilient. In her world, success is not a summit, but a shared path lit with purpose.
Melida's Artist Statement
ART teaches us the history of man, his beliefs and his aspirations.Â
ART engages us in the politics of the world and allows us to have our say through self expression.
ART involves us in mathematics and chemistry when we measure, mix and explore its elements.
ART engages us in modern science, technology and engineering as the tools we use for creating are constantly evolving and being reinvented. We explore these realms as inventors ourselves through design and ingenuity.
ART surpasses any language in its capacity to be universal.
Art transcends into all fields of study. It enriches the way we think by encouraging both analytical and philosophical inquiry. Its value surpasses pure aesthetics.
ART’s most profound contribution to humanity is its power to help us see the world through new perspectives. It encourages us to explore our own identity and culture, while also creating spaces where we can find common ground with others. Ultimately, art fosters compassion and kindness toward the world around us. History shows that when a civilization is stripped of its art, its vitality and spirit inevitably decline.
ART is our legacy to future generations.
ART is:
A voice,
A valuable tool for survival,
A key element in exploring the world around us
A vehicle for change
WORK
Click Photo Above to Hear "There in a City, Our, Jersey City"
Rodas made history in 2013 when she was chosen by The City of Jersey City to serve as inaugural poet. She recited her poem “There in a City, Our, Jersey City” at Mayor Steven Fulop's Inauguration Ceremony. Her performance captivated an audience of more than 2,000 people.
