spotlight
Poem by Major Jackson Featured in On Being Podcast
Nov. 9, 2021—Gertrude Conaway Professor Major Jackson’s poem “Blunts” was featured on the podcast Poetry Unbound. Pádraig Ó Tuama gives a reading and discussion of the poem, which appears in Major’s first book “Leaving Saturn” which will have been published twenty years ago next year. To listen to the podcast click here.
(11/11/2021) Tommy Orange, fiction (pre-recorded virtual reading): 7 PM
Nov. 8, 2021—Tommy Orange is an American novelist and writer from Oakland, California. His first book, There, There, won the PEN/Hemingway Award, the National Book Critics Circle John Leonard Prize, the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize, and the American Book Award. He is a recent graduate from the MFA program at the Institute of American Indian Arts, and he...
Read Sandy Solomon’s Poem “Spring Recalled in Spring” in The New Yorker (10/18/2021)
Oct. 18, 2021—Congratulations to Sandy Solomon on the publication of her poem, “Spring Recalled in Spring,” in this week’s (10/18/2021) copy of The New Yorker! Click here to read the poem and to listen to audio of her reading it.
Poem by Tiana Clark Published in The Atlantic
Sep. 23, 2021—Congratulations to Tiana Clark, who received her MFA in Creative Writing at Vanderbilt University, on the publication of her poem “Broken Sestina Reaching for Black Joy” in The Atlantic! Click here to read the poem.
VU Graduate Bryan Byrdlong Receives Prestigious Poetry Fellowship
Sep. 14, 2021—Bryan Byrdlong (he/him) was recently announced as a 2021 recipient of the Ruth Lilly & Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowship. Byrdlong majored in English/Creative Writing at Vanderbilt University, is a Black writer from Chicago, Illinois. He is a graduate of the Helen Zell Writers’ Program at the University of Michigan, and a PhD candidate in Creative...
Pallavi Wakharkar Wins 2021 Iowa Review Award for Fiction
Jun. 10, 2021—Congratulations to Pallavi Wakharkar on her reception of the 2021 Iowa Review Award for Fiction! Click here to see the announcement.
See Sandy Solomon’s New Poem in The New Yorker
Jun. 1, 2021—Congratulations to Sandy Solomon, whose poem, “The Great Confinement,” is featured in the June 7, 2021 issue of The New Yorker ! To read the poem and to enjoy the “Audio: Read by the author” feature on The New Yorker ‘s website, click here.
Joshua Moore honored by Poetry Foundation for work on ‘Versify’ podcast
Apr. 1, 2021—Joshua Moore (MFA ’20) has been honored by the Poetry Foundation for his production on the Fisk Jubilee Singers, broadcasted on WPLN’s podcast Versify. This work, written and produced by Joshua, has been selected as one of six episodes to air on Roll Call: A Black Poetry Radio Hour, a VS podcast miniseries to spotlight urgent...
Akshya Saxena is 2021-2023 Dean’s Faculty Fellow in English
Mar. 24, 2021—Congratulations to Assistant Professor of English Akshya Saxena! The Dean’s Faculty Fellows Program launched in 2018 to support untenured faculty in their research, scholarship, and creative expression during their probationary period. Fellows are selected by a committee from among many highly competitive nominations because of their scholarly accomplishments and the promise they show to make an impact...