Sometimes serendipity plays a pivotal role in research. For Tobias Warner, an associate professor in the UC Davis Department of French and Italian, such a circumstance was integral to uncovering a forgotten poem written by foundational Senegalese author and feminist Mariama Bâ, an important figure in African literature despite leaving behind only a handful of published works.
The Andrés Montoya Poetry Prize is open to Latinx poets residing in the United States who have yet to publish a full-length poetry collection. Submissions for the prize open Nov. 1 and close Feb. 16, 2024.
Two professors from the University of California, Davis, have been elected as members of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, including Archana Venkatesan of the College of Letters and Science. Pamela C. Ronald, Distinguished Professor in the College of Agriculture and Environment Science, was also elected to the academy.
The UC Davis Creative Writing Series for the spring will be part of an art installation at a performing arts center, include a celebration and discussion in Woodland of a new book by a Mexican poet, and feature a Pulitzer Prize in Poetry winner. The Creative Writing Program is part of the Department of English.
Art and Words from Ashwini Bhat and Forrest Gander
April 15 and 28, 7:30 p.m.
The UC Davis Creative Writing Program in the Department of English will present online readings March 2 and 3 — one by a star of the literary world, and another by three UC Davis alumni with newly published books. In April, three lyric and narrative poets who create long-form works will take part in a conversation and give readings. All the readings are co-sponsored by the UC Davis Library.
Alumni share new novels
Three graduates of the Creative Writing Program will return to campus virtually March 2 at 4:30 p.m. to read from their books published last year.
Seeta Chaganti, a professor of English, recently received a prize from the Modern Language Association of America (MLS) for her book exploring the complex relationship between medieval dance and medieval poetry.
The UC Davis Department of English Creative Writing Reading Series starts Nov. 18 with Jos Charles, whose poetry collection feeld was a 2019 finalist for the Pulitzer Prize and longlisted for a National Book Award. The series, co-sponsored by the UC Davis Library, continues in 2020 with a wide range of writers, including poets who are also visual artists, novelists and non-fiction writers exploring immigration, race, love, pop culture and language.
Five faculty in the UC Davis College of Letters and Science — an artist, a poet, a psychologist, a mathematician and a physicist — have been named to the 2019 class of Chancellor’s Fellows, the university’s annual honors program recognizing associate professors for high achievement in the quality and excellence of research and teaching.