Alumnus Wins Prize for Book of Poetry

Logan Fry, class of 2010, English and Creative Writing major, recently won the Omnidawn Publishing "2019 First/Second Poetry Book Prize for Harpo Before the Opus. He received $3,000, publication by Omnidawn Publishing, and 100 author copies. Srikanth Reddy judged. The annual award is given for a first or second poetry collection," according to Poets & Writers. The publisher's description of the book reads as follows:

The poems begin where language fails, where speech becomes disembodied, and syntax skids to a stop that dissolves into gesture. Where its form reaches an end, formlessness offers a space ripe with possibility. Here we find Harpo, reaching into the frustrated endpoint of language to find a method for its resurrection. Fry sees that language becomes a tool for alienation and uses the poems in Harpo Before the Opus to excavate paths back to tenderness. These are poems from the edge, pulling language out from its failure and into a fervent interrogation of its possibilities. What was once a tool of capitalistic alienation now serves as material for building connections.

In spiraling explorations of rhetoric, these poems allow language to break from its prescribed structures, and instead, it becomes a gestural embrace of feeling and being. Fry utilizes a Marxist lens to scrutinize and reinvent the use of language. In Fry’s hands, language is rendered a visceral and sensual material, forming poems that are both deeply felt philosophical inquiries and wildly playful exercises of wit.

Logan Fry resides in Austin, Texas with his wife, Caroline, and their three boys, Wolfie, Hank Scorpio, and Barthelme. He received his MFA at the University of Texas and now teaches writing at Texas State University. Fry is the founding editor of Flag + Void, and his poetry has appeared in New American Writing, Fence, West Branch, Boston Review, Prelude, Denver Quarterly, and the Best American Experimental Writing anthology. 

Click here to visit Fry's personal site. Harpo Before the Opus will be available for purchase in October 2019.

Ashland University to Hold International Arthur Miller Conference This Fall

Arthur Miller

From the Ashland University News Center: 

ASHLAND, Ohio – Ashland University will hold the 13th Annual International Arthur Miller Conference on the AU campus Oct. 18-20, 2019. The title of the conference is “Arthur Miller and the Question of Relevance.”

The conference will feature staged readings of scenes from Miller’s plays and the Ashland University Department of Theatre will present its production of Miller’s An Enemy of the People, which runs Oct. 11-19.

The conference will include discussion of the relevance of Miller’s life and works from his roots, sources and early plays through the politics in his plays, and his work as adapter. Miller’s works will be compared with other playwrights both past and present.

“This conference will feature papers exploring Miller’s life and work in relation to this question of relevance, be it in terms legacy, influence, connection, appositeness, validity or rejection,” said Teresa Durbin-Ames, conference director and Associate Professor of Theatre at AU. “Submitted papers consider Miller’s dramatic works in comparison with other playwrights. And because we will gather in the Midwest, papers also address this question in relation to the idea of Miller and Middle America.”

The conference keynote address will be delivered by distinguished Arthur Miller scholar Susan C. W. Abbotson of Rhode Island College. She is the author of A Critical Companion to Arthur Miller and Student Companion to Arthur Miller and numerous articles on Miller.

For further information, go to the Arthur Miller Society website at arthurmillersociety.net. Registration information can be found on the AU website at: www.ashland.edu/MillerConference2019

Dr. Jayne Waterman and Dr. Hilary Donatini, both Associate Professors of English, are assisting Dr. Durbin-Ames in planning for the conference. 

2017 Graduate Lands Job After Completing Master's Degree

Emily Cardwell, class of 2017, major in English and History, has recently accepted a position at the School of Law at the University of Detroit Mercy. Congratulations, Emily!

Cardwell describes the position below: 

My new title is Assistant Director of Career Services and Outreach for the School of Law at the University of Detroit Mercy. I'm responsible for identifying and posting externship and job opportunities, assisting with programming like career fairs and networking events, and serving as a resource for students and alumni as they navigate the job search process. 

As I looked for jobs after finishing my master's degree at Kent State, I knew I wanted to work in career services. While at Kent State, I taught a course designed to help students connect their experiences, values, and interests to meaningful careers, so I wanted to continue this rewarding work. I've always been interested in the legal field, so I was excited to find a position that provided the best of both worlds!

Alumni Spotlight: Kristen Herrick

Kristen Herrick 

Class of 2016 

English Major 

Current Job: Professional Academic Advisor, College of Business & Economics and Deciding Students, Ashland University 

Every day I am blessed to work alongside the same staff and collaborate with the same faculty who shaped me from a student into a life-long learner and further encouraged and inspired me to pursue a career in higher education. In my current role, I advise and support incoming freshmen in the College of Business and Economics and students who are still deciding on a major. In the College of Business and Economics there is a wide variety of students, and I enjoy getting to know their individual stories, helping them transition from high school to college, and guiding them in planning their academic journeys. In addition, I get to support students who are still deciding on a major and encourage them to explore their interests and possible careers, while reassuring them that it is okay to be unsure and take time to choose a major.

As an alumna of Ashland University, I have both an employee and student perspective to my advantage when advising in the Center for Academic Support. I am able to share my own amazing experiences as an English major with my advisees and encourage them to pursue a major that aligns with their life calling as I did. Majoring in English prepared me for graduate level coursework, internships, and the daily hurdles I encounter in my career. I was able to complete five internships as an undergraduate and another four at the graduate level. In each of those positions, my supervisors encouraged me to communicate with their valued stakeholders because they knew I had the language and critical thinking skills to effectively and eloquently do so. Furthermore, I continue to use my English background daily to review content that our center creates, address student questions and concerns, and collaborate with other departments on campus.

The English department at Ashland University is filled with passionate professors who truly strive to impact and promote growth in their students. Whether it was working one-on-one with Dr. Donatini to perfect my Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (URCA) Symposium presentation, meeting with a group of classmates to discuss The Brothers Karamazov at Dr. Weaver’s home, or visiting Dr. Waterman’s office to get feedback on my latest essay, I will neither forget my experiences as an English major nor my professors’ dedication to and interest in me as a student, individual, and human being.