Meet this year’s MacArthur ‘genius grant’ recipients, including a hula master and the poet laureate

By THALIA BEATY
Associated Press

The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation has announced its 2023 class of fellows, often known as recipients of the “genius grant.” The 20 new MacArthur fellows include a scientist who studies the airborne transmission of diseases and a master hula dancer and cultural preservationist. The sitting U.S. poet laureate and an attorney who documents the deaths of people in prison also are among those selected. Recipients of the fellowship receive a grant of $800,000 over five years and can spend the money however they want. The foundation oversees a nomination and review process to select the fellows, which often takes years.