Kudos to Fresno Writers — Fall 2022

February 3, 2023.Reading time 23 minutes.

Alumni Gabriel Ibarra (left) and Pilar Christiana Graham have joined the list of more than 50 Fresno State MFA alumni to publish a debut book.

Kudos to #FresnoWriters is an ongoing series on the Fresno State MFA blog, celebrating the professional accomplishments of students, alumni, and faculty in Fresno State’s Department of English and Creative Writing Program.

Georgia author wins 2022 Philip Levine Prize for Poetry

February 3, 2023.Reading time 6 minutes.

Éric Morales-Franceschini in a black hat and shirt in a forest.

The Fresno State Master of Fine Arts Program in creative writing announced Georgia author Éric Morales-Franceschini has won the 2022 Philip Levine Prize for Poetry book contest, which includes a $2,000 award and publication of his debut full-length poetry collection, “Syndrome.”

English symposium traces hope across boundaries

December 1, 2022.Reading time 6 minutes.

Manuel Muñoz in a blue denim jacket and left hand in his hair. Photo by Manuel Muñoz

Author and Central Valley native Manuel Muñoz will deliver the keynote address for Fresno State’s sixth annual Students of English Studies Association symposium on December 8 and 9. The theme of this year’s symposium is “Transcending Boundaries: Finding Hope in the Now.”

Library careers offer English alumni a collection of opportunities

October 26, 2022.Reading time 24 minutes.

Taylor Petersen posing with a skeleton, smiling.

Dozens of English Department alumni over the years have gone on to develop successful library careers.

Professor Mai Der Vang wins American Book Award

September 9, 2022.Reading time 1 minute.

Finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in Poetry Mai Der Vang stands in front of a green field and a setting sun.

Author Mai Der Vang, an assistant professor of English at Fresno State, won an American Book Award for her documentary poetry collection, “Yellow Rain.”

Juan Felipe Herrera wins Ruth Lilly Poetry Prize

September 9, 2022.Reading time 1 minute.

Juan Felipe Herrera in front of an orange patterned wall in the Laureate Lab Visual Wordist Studio.

U.S. Poet Laureate Emeritus Juan Felipe Herrera, a professor emeritus of Chicano and Latin American studies at Fresno State, won a Ruth Lilly Poetry Prize in recognition of outstanding lifetime achievement in poetry.

In Memoriam: Dr. Ray McKnight

August 31, 2022.Reading time 17 minutes.

Ray McKnight - Credit: Michelle Garcia/She Breathes Photography

Dr. H. Ray McKnight, a Fresno State professor emeritus of English, passed away on Aug. 5 in Richmond, California. He was 88.

New Faces: Sean A. Gordon

August 24, 2022.Reading time 11 minutes.

The College of Arts and Humanities welcomes new faculty Dr. Sean A. Gordon to the Department of English. He earned a Ph.D. in English and American Studies from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where he recently defended his dissertation, “On Being Dispersed: The Poetics of Dehiscence from ‘We the People’ to Abolition.”

In Memoriam: Steve Adisasmito-Smith

August 12, 2022.Reading time 18 minutes.

Dr. Steve Adisasmito-Smith, a Fresno State associate professor of English, passed away on July 10. He was 57.

Fall Armenian Lecture Series begins with Der Matossian talk on ‘The Horrors of Adana’

August 12, 2022.Reading time 3 minutes.

Image of the The Horrors of Adana: Revolution and Violence in the Early Twentieth Century book cover. In a faded black and white image, three people look at the camera in front of a pile of debris.

Dr. Bedross Der Matossian will present an in-person lecture entitled “The Horrors of Adana: Revolution and Violence in the Early Twentieth Century” at 7 p.m. Friday, August 26, at the Whitten Boardroom of the Smittcamp Alumni House.