UW-L English Studies Blog

Student Tutoring Opportunity

I just received this request for a tutor.  Please pass the information on to any student you think would be interested and capable of doing a good job.  --Terry Beck

Hello,

     I am looking for anyone that would be interested in tutoring an 8th grade boy.  His parents have decided that he is a bit behind in the level in writing he should be at, and they want to be caught up before he goes to high school next fall.
     They are looking for a tutor to work with him on his writing (mechanics, flow, ideas, etc.) for a day or two a week for a half hour to an hour—sometime after 2:35 in the afternoon.  Location is still up in the air, but they would be happy to make accommodations.  Amount of pay is unknown. 
     I can tell you that this is a great kid! he just needs a little extra help.
If anybody is interested, s/he can contact me through email: brion.eliz@students.uwlax.edu.

Thank you!

Elizabeth Brion

Zelda Lockhart Visit

Greetings,

March 27-29, Zelda Lockhart--a novelist and community activist from North Carolina--will be visiting campus.  Her trip is funded primarily through a Visiting Artist of Color Grant. 

Zelda’s itinerary is still a work in progress; at this point she has spare time to offer should anyone be interested in having her visit a class or participate in other activities.  Currently, her only commitments are (1) a public reading, Wednesday, March 28, at 7 p.m. (140 Cowley Hall), and (2) a visit to my creative writing class, Thursday, March 29, 2:15-3:40 (Wimberly 125).  The remainder of that Wednesday and Thursday are free.   I know her to be friendly, engaging, and accessible.  She's excited about her visit, and she's eager to do as much as she can while she's here. 

One copy of her latest novel, Cold Running Creek, is available in the department mailroom; other copies are en route.  Additional information about her and her novel should be in faculty mailboxes (written as a promotional packet by the publisher), but here's a brief plot summary, taken from

• http://zeldalockhart.com/

“During one of the most tumultuous times for the North American continent (pre and post Civil War) three generations of women both Native American and African American, struggle to be free. Cold Running Creek is enlightening in its untold historical truths, and relevant to all time with its soul-stirring revelations. With a chorus of swamps, voodoo, floods, creeks and rivers, Cold Running Creek is rich, passionate, and leaves the reader breathless. "

And here's a blurb:

"…Cold Running Creek brings the twin horrors of removal and slavery in close orbit with one another....As Lockhart freely imagines the pathos and potentialities of Native and African American crossings, she tells a tale that will set a generation of readers in search of more stories—both fictional and real—of southern Black/Indian experience.” –Sharon P. Holland and Tiya Miles, co-editors of Crossing Waters, Crossing Worlds: The African Diaspora in Indian Country (Duke University Press 2006).

If you have any questions or ideas, please don't hesitate to share. 

yours,

Matt Cashion

Sarah Fox at the Pump House

Hi everyone,

Next Thursday, February 15th, Sarah Fox is the featured reader at the Pump House Reading Series.  Doors open at 6:30, event begins at 7:00, with a suggested 2$ donation that gets you a ticket for the super-fun raffle (fabulous prizes).  Cash bar.  Open mic after the featured reader--bring work to share!

Sarah lives in Minneapolis, where she works as a doula (which is a professional childbirth assistant).  Her poems are clear and lively, fun and richly textured.  She has a recent book called because why from Coffee House Press, which will be available at the reading. Here's a little taste--an excerpt from her poem "Straight from New York!"

There's a story you want to tell,
but the party's winding down.
People are sifting through purses
for keys.  You may be a little drunk,

but you start anyway then realize
the story's going nowhere, you can't
remember the good parts, whether
the bridge was in Venice or Paris.

Something about desire fastens the story
to your repertoire, something you want
to remind yourself.  Like the name of the train
station where a beautiful French man

kissed you on the mouth but didn't
wave from the window though you
waited on the platform and wished you had
noticed the color of his eyes.

Please join us for the February installment of the Pump House reading series.  It promises to be another remarkable evening of poetry and good company.

Sincerely,

Bill Stobb and David Krump
co-curators

A Podcast on Reasoning

Another interesting podcast is LSAT Reasoning in Everyday Life--put out by The Princeton Review, ostensibly to help students prepare for the Law School  Admission Test.  But it's worthwhile for anyone interested in listening to analyses of the reasoning (and flaws of reasoning) in everyday situations. 

The February 5, 2007 broadcast analyzes the logic of Super Bowl ads.