On October 27, 2025, Hayley Foo, a junior at Great Oak High School in the Temecula Valley Unified School District, was named the 2026 Riverside County Teen Poet Laureate. This is the first time in five years that a student from Temecula Valley Unified has received this award. The honor is given by the Riverside County Office of Education in partnership with the Inlandia Institute. This year, the competition received 163 entries. Thirty-five finalists and eight super finalists were chosen by a panel of six judges. The winning poems, including Hayley’s, will be published in the 2025-2026 Teen Poet Laureate Chapbook.
Hayley participates in several school organizations, including the National Honor Society, UNICEF, Red Cross, and the Biology and Medical Club. She is also Chair of the National Student Bioethics Association, where she works on healthcare access and equality. In addition, she founded Teen Zine, a non-profit platform for student writers.
Hayley began writing at age three after a childhood accident. She says writing helps her process fear and regain control. Her poetry is influenced by nature, relationships, and poet Gloria Jean. She uses lowercase letters in her poems to create a sense of intimacy…