Our Team | Poetry In Voice

Poetry In Voice/Les voix de la poésie

2-15 AV LAURIER E
MONTRÉAL, QC H2T 1E4
CANADA

For general inquiries please email us at info@poetryinvoice.ca. Or find our team's email addresses below.

Barbara Lepeltier, French Program Coordinator (elle/she/her)

Barbara Lepeltier holds a Bachelor’s degree in English literatures and a Master’s degree in translation. Born and raised in Le Havre, Normandy, she studied in Toronto and taught French as a second language in Nova Scotia, where she also led French-language workshops for seniors in the community. A passionate translator and proofreader, Barbara is also pursuing a Master’s degree in creative writing at the Université du Québec à Montréal, where she studies the relationships between the body, the land and traumatic memory. She is thankful to contribute to giving young people the chance to discover and embrace the power of poetry, both that of others and that which lies within each and every one of them.

Amanda Merpaw, English Program Director (elle/she/her)

amanda@poetryinvoice.ca

Amanda Merpaw is a writer, editor, and educator. She holds both a bachelor’s and master’s degree in English literature, as well as a master’s degree in teaching. She has over a decade of experience teaching and holding leadership positions in both educational and nonprofit environments, with expertise in arts & heritage education, equity-based pedagogies, and digital educational content. A passionate editor, she has also held editorial roles at diverse literary magazines and presses. As a poet, Amanda’s work has appeared in a variety of digital and print publications. She is delighted to work for an organization that champions a more poetic cultural landscape by bringing poetry to students and teachers across the country and beyond.

David J. Smith, Executive Director (il/he/him)

David at the Winnipeg Art Gallery with 2019 National Finalists (l to r) Berry Genge, Clara Sismondo, Aksa Caleb, Nawal Semir, and Alexander Morin

david@poetryinvoice.ca

David has been with Poetry In Voice/Les voix de la poésie since 2011, first as Technical Director and then as Executive Director starting in 2014. With his background in theatre, filmmaking, photography, and engineering, David has developed our website, created our videos, and orchestrated our live and online contests.

His love of poetry and performance was sparked when he photographed the first team slam at the People’s Poetry Gathering in 1999. In 2007 he spent a year in classrooms and the community filming high school students in Rochester, NY, as they formed a slam team for Brave New Voices. He is thrilled that it’s now his job to encourage students to read, recite, and write poetry. Since Gretzky retired he has been an obsessive follower of Liverpool Football Club.

Ariane Tapp, Director of Communications and French Programming (elle/she/her)

ariane@lesvoixdelapoesie.ca

Ariane Tapp holds a bachelor's degree in literary studies, with a major in creative writing, and a master's degree in literature and stage and screen arts, with a master's thesis in screenwriting. A lover of the French language, Ariane is also a poet and a proofreader, and she has taught French as a second and foreign language in Quebec and Europe. In 2022, she led the Cercle des autrices et auteurs de la relève, in collaboration with the Institut Canadien de Québec. Ariane is happy to contribute to bringing poetry to light and make it shine with Poetry In Voice, an organisation she has admired from the very beginning. She is also passionate about cinema, music, natural landscapes and cats.

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