2015 Writing Contests

Department of English 2015 Writing Contests

Jon Scott Nelson Freshmen Creative Writing Contest
This contest is open to all WVU freshmen. Prizes are awarded for first ($75), second ($50), and third place ($25). Creative writing only. Please submit one entry in fiction, creative nonfiction, or poetry (a poetry entry should be 3-5 poems; a prose entry no more than 20 pages).

Jon Scott Nelson First-Year Writing Award
All students enrolled in English 101 (or English 103) during either the Fall 2014 or Spring 2015 semesters are eligible with up to three prizes awarded annually ($50 each). Please submit one essay written in an English 101 (or 103) class.

Jon Scott Nelson Professional Writing and Editing Award
This contest is open to all students enrolled in PWE courses. All essays must have been written for English 301, 302, 303, 304, and/or 305 for the 2014-15 academic year. Up to three prizes will be awarded (up to $50 each). An entry should be no more than 10 pages but may include more than one piece of professional writing.

Waitman Barbe Creative Writing Contest
This contest is separated into three divisions (fiction, poetry, and non-fiction) and is open to sophomores, juniors, and seniors only. One prize ($75) and one honorable mention ($50) are awarded in each division. Please submit one entry in fiction, creative nonfiction, or poetry (a poetry entry should be 3-5 poems; a prose entry no more than 20 pages). This contest is funded by the James Paul Brawner Endowed Writing Award Fund.

James Paul Brawner Expository Writing Contest
This contest is separated into three divisions—English 102, undergraduate writing (including English 103 and all WVU classes), and graduate writing from any course at WVU. First ($75), second ($50), and third ($25) place awards are normally awarded for each division. Please submit one example of expository writing from any class taken at WVU during the 2014-15 academic year. Students may not submit more than one entry per division.

Russ MacDonald Graduate Creative Writing Contest
This is the only creative writing contest solely for WVU graduate students. Generally, three prizes are awarded annually ($50 each). Please submit one entry in fiction, creative nonfiction, or poetry (a poetry entry should be 3-5 poems; a prose entry no more than 25 pages). This contest is funded by the James Paul Brawner Endowed Writing Award Fund.

Appalachian Writing Award
This contest is open to all undergraduate students at WVU who grew up in Appalachia, which includes all of West Virginia, and whose work is set in Appalachia. The student will receive a scholarship ($350 value) to the West Virginia Writers' Workshop, which features writers of national reputation and will be held July 16 to July 19 in Morgantown. Submit one story or essay (up to 25 pages) or five poems. This contest is funded by writer Dwight Harshbarger.

Deadline for all contests:

Friday, March 13, 2015 at 12:00 p.m. in 100 Colson Hall
All submissions must have been written for classes at WVU; doctoral dissertations and MA theses not eligible. Students' names should be omitted from the entries. Attach a cover sheet to the entry which lists: name, local address, email address, local telephone number, class rank (fr, soph, etc.), student ID, title of entry, and name of contest entering (be sure to specify which division within the contest if applicable), and instructor/class for whom the paper was written. Students’ entries will be disqualified if information is missing from cover sheet. Winners will be notified by April 13 and will be invited to the Department’s annual Awards Luncheon held on Wednesday, April 15. Any WVU student is eligible for these contests; however, the student’s entry must have been written while the student was enrolled at WVU. Students may not submit the same entry for more than one contest or more than one entry per contest. For more information, email Marsha Bissett at Marsha.Bissett@mail.wvu.edu

No entries submitted after the deadline will be accepted.

Job News: Associate Professor/Chair of Humanities position at University of Pittsburgh--Johnstown

Associate Professor, English Literature, and Chair of Humanities

The University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown seeks to hire a Chair of the Humanities Division, who can also teach within the English Department in the fields of world drama and Shakespeare, with a secondary interest in digital humanities.  This 12-month position begins August 1, 2015, and requires a Ph.D. in English or related field. 

With an established record of excellent teaching and scholarly publications, the successful candidate will be eligible for tenure at Pitt-Johnstown. This candidate should have at least five years of experience at the rank of associate professor, seven preferred. In addition, the successful candidate should have administrative experience that includes supervising and evaluating faculty; developing and assessing curriculum; managing a budget; and active recruiting of new students.

The Humanities Division Chair coordinates the curriculum and activities of nine departments with majors in Communication, English Literature, English Writing, Journalism, and Theatre Arts and additional minors in Art History, Music, Philosophy, and Foreign Language (Spanish and French), and must mentor and evaluate 23 full-time faculty and 29 part-time faculty.  The Chair is also responsible for the freshman composition program as well as the ESL program.

In addition to administrative duties, the successful candidate will teach six credits per semester in courses such as Dramatic Imagination and Introduction to Shakespeare, with possible teaching of a digital humanities course. 

The position includes benefits and a competitive salary.  For full consideration, send letter of application, CV, teaching philosophy, evidence of teaching effectiveness (e.g., relevant syllabi and student evaluations), all transcripts, and three letters of reference directly from the source or placement office to Dr. Patty S. Derrick, English Literature Search Committee, Biddle Hall 234, University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown, 450 Schoolhouse Road, Johnstown, PA 15904.  Electronic submissions can be sent to lcoyle@pitt.edu. Review of applications will begin on January 30, 2015, and continue until the position is filled; to receive full consideration, all materials should be received by the initial review date.  Only completed applications will be advanced in consideration.

Pitt-Johnstown is a comprehensive four-year undergraduate campus of the University of Pittsburgh System, located 70 miles southeast of Pittsburgh on a beautiful 650-acre wooded site in the Laurel Highlands of Pennsylvania.  The college community includes roughly 3,000 undergraduate students and 150 full-time faculty distributed through six academic divisions:  Education, Engineering Technology, Humanities, Natural Sciences, Nursing and Health Sciences, and Social Sciences.  Each division offers four-year baccalaureate programs.  The University of Pittsburgh is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity employer and values equality of opportunity, human dignity, and diversity.

Bhushan Aryal, ABD

The Tenants were very glad to get the following news from Tim Sweet:

"Please join in congratulating Bhushan Aryal, who passed his candidacy exam today. The examining committee included Laura Brady, Catherine Gouge, Tom Sura, Tim Sweet, and our former colleague Scott Wible."

Congratulations to Bhushan on passing this important milestone in his doctoral work!

Ryan Fletcher, ABD

Either Ryan just before the oral or a late 20th-century animal representation

It's definitely ABD season, and the Tenants are pleased to be able to congratulate Ryan Fletcher for successfully passing the Qualifying Exam for Doctoral Candidacy. Ryan's dissertation project will focus on sensuous animal representations in American literature from the mid 19th century into the early 20th century.

Rumor has it that the wide-ranging oral examination included discussions of the tastes and smells of a sperm whale's bodily fluids, the sensory lives of sled dogs, and the gender politics of feline representation between Ryan and his committee: Tim Sweet (Chair), Lara Farina, Lowell Duckert, Cari Carpenter, and Karl Steel (Brooklyn College).

Maria Barron, ABD

Maria, who is ABD, and her horse, who is not, possibly taken at her country house.

The Tenants were very pleased to get the following news from John Lamb this week:

"Congratulations to Maria Barron who passed her candidacy exams yesterday [Wednesday]. In preparation for the new season of Downtown Abbey, Maria regaled Profs Bergner, Claycomb, Hodge (from History), Weihman and yours truly with the history and myth of the English country house. Bravo Maria!"

Congratulations to Maria!

CFP: WV Undergraduate Literary Symposium

Call for Papers 

Twenty-Third Annual

West Virginia Literary Symposium

for Undergraduate Students

 

Fairmont State University

Fairmont, West Virginia 

Saturday, April 11, 2015

 Sponsored by the

School of Language and Literature

College of Liberal Arts of Fairmont State University

 

Analytical, theoretical, or interpretative studies of literary or dramatic works, films, or popular culture are invited for this annual literary symposium.  Presentations must be in English, though the works studied may be in any language. The top three presentations will earn cash prizes.  Completed papers should be appropriate for a 15-minute presentation and, therefore, should not exceed 8-10 double-spaced, typed pages (the selection committee will not read any submission beyond the tenth page).  One submission per person,  please.  Only papers written during the 2014 calendar year are eligible.  Electronic submissions are preferred.  Note:  Papers must be formatted either in Word or .rtf. 

Attach completed paper along with your name, address, telephone number and e-mail address, AV requirements (ie computer projection, DVD player and TV, etc) and send to Dr Angela Schwer (Angela.Schwer@fairmontstate.edu)

Papers must be submitted no later than midnight, Friday, December 19, 2014.  Students will be notified of their status by Friday, January 30, 2015.  For more information, call  (304)367-4723 or e-mail Angela.Schwer@fairmontstate.edu.

Graduate Assistant Position for Spring Semester: Undergraduate Studies Office

AVAILABLE GRADUATE ASSISTANT POSITION

ECAS Undergraduate Studies Office

Spring Semester 2015

 Nature of Program: The ECAS Undergraduate Studies Office serves all the undergraduate students who have a major in the College.  We keep records for over 4000 students, check their credentials for graduation and certify them for graduation.

Position Responsibilities:  The GA position requires answering the phone, keeping calendars, serving as the initial point of contact in the office, and scheduling meetings.  The successful candidate will also help maintain over 2,500 digital files and supporting documents, of undergraduate students in the Eberly College of Arts and Sciences, and assist with entering Degree Works exceptions and notes regarding student graduation.

The assignment requires 20 hours of work per week in the ECAS Undergraduate Studies Office during regular office hours. The Graduate Assistant will work from 10:00AM to 3:30PM though specific times are flexible to accommodate the GA’s classroom schedule as well as the needs of the office. 

Qualifications:

·  Enrolled at WVU in a full-time ECAS graduate program for the spring 2015; if no suitable ECAS candidate is found, applicants outside the college will be considered.

·  Due to the sensitive nature of working with confidential materials, and the importance of keeping accurate records, the successful applicant must be very dependable.

·  Ability to perform meticulous review of materials, to pay close attention to details regarding students’ records.

·  Excellent communication skills, in particular when working with students and faculty.

·  Ability to work effectively both independently and with supervision

·  Familiarity with Degree Works would be preferred

 Stipend: $6,200 for 4.5 months plus tuition waiver and basic health insurance. Starting date: Jan 12, 2015 through May 15, 2015.

Application: Please submit a résumé and cover letter addressing: 1) the requirements mentioned above, 2) your graduate program and 3) availability schedule, either by email or in person to Tara Robbins (ECASUGStudies@mail.wvu.edu), 221 Armstrong Hall. Phone: 304-293-7476. Screening of applications starts now, and will continue until a suitable candidate is found.