Nine students who will graduate in May from West Virginia University’s Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing Program will read from their work April 28 at 7:30 p.m. in the Rhododendron Room of the Mountainlair.

The reading is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served.

The graduating students have published in a wide range of literary journals, including the “Mid-American Review,” “Ninth Letter,” and the “Michigan Quarterly Review.” One of the graduates, Sarah Einstein, won a Pushcart Prize, one of the top awards given to an individual’s writing, for her essay “Mot.” Both Einstein and Heather Frese had essays acknowledged as “distinguished” in the latest edition of “Best American Essays.”

The reading will take place during the same week the MFA Program is celebrating its 10th anniversary.

“This is a terrific group of writers,” said Mark Brazaitis, an associate professor of English and the director of the Creative Writing Program. “We’ll be sorry to see them go, but we say goodbye knowing they will have great success with their writing.”

The writers and their hometowns are: Einstein (Huntington, W.Va.); Frese (Cambridge, Ohio); Alex Berge (Cleveland, Ohio); Charity Gingerich (Hartville, Ohio); Aaron Hoover (West Lafayette, Ind.); Victoria Moore (Stewart County, Tenn.); Rebecca Schwab (Silver Creek, N.Y.); Christina Rothenbeck (Washington, N.J.); and Ashley Ryle (Owensboro, Ky.).

“It’s fitting that such an outstanding group of writers is graduating during our 10th anniversary year,” Brazaitis said. “We think this class sets the right tone for the future.”

-WVU-

CONTACT: Mark Brazaitis, Director of Creative Writing
304-293-9707 Mark.Brazaitis@mail.wvu.edu

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