Rio Grande Valley International Poetry Festival Apr. 23-26, 2026

VIPF 2026: The Rio Grande Valley International Poetry Festival

McAllen, TX,

The Rio Grande Valley International Poetry Festival, established in 2008, is a four-day poetry festival in deep South Texas held concurrently in two countries on the last full weekend in April. You don't need to register in order to submit to our anthology, Boundless. We feed you dinner on Saturday night as part of the Poetry Pachanga--the event that started it all. V.I.P.F. is a program of 
Art That Heals, Inc., and  El Zarape Press, with sponsorship from by Creative Alignment Consulting and the McAllen Chamber of Commerce and welcomes poets from around the world.

Rio Grande Valley International Poetry Festival Poets in Schools

📚✏️ Educators & Librarians — Invite Poets Into Your Schools!

As part of the 19th Annual Rio Grande Valley International Poetry Festival, we are offering our Poets in Schools Program on Friday, April 24, 2026, between 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM.

We are inviting teachers, librarians, and schools across the Rio Grande Valley to host visiting poets for readings, conversations, and creative writing experiences with students. This is a wonderful opportunity for students to engage with poets from the Valley and around the world.

If you would like to schedule a poet to visit your school or library, please email us to reserve a time.

📧 rgvipf@gmail.com

Let’s bring poetry directly into our classrooms and inspire the next generation of writers and readers.

—
Edward Vidaurre
Daniel García Ordaz
Rio Grande Valley International Poetry Festival

#RGVIPF #PoetsInSchools #ValleyPoetry #PoetryInTheClassroom #vipf2026

 
 

San Benito, TX

Ed Downs Elementary School

Idea McAllen

Idea McAllen College Prep

Paola Carrasco

Idea McAllen College Prep