Clubs, Colloquia, and Workshops News Spring 2023

During the 2022-2023 academic year, Stillpoint Literary Magazine published their 54th edition.  Under Senior Editors Anna Goellner (Editor-in-Chief), Rachel Warner (Arts & Design Editor), Summer Porter (Submissions Editor), and Isa Davis (Arts & Design Editor-in-Training), over 30 staff members solicited University of Georgia student work, ultimately publishing over 90 pieces of poetry, prose, and fine art.  Stillpoint also worked with Young Dawgs Intern Ayanna Daija Funmilayo Lonon, a budding writer and high school senior at Clarke Central High School.  Stillpoint staff and contributors took part in a National Poetry Month reading in front of the Main Library, sponsored by the UGA Library and the Georgia Review.  Stillpoint also hosted a launch for Edition 54 in the Founders Memorial Garden on Sunday, April 23rd.

After going dormant during the Covid pandemic, Sigma Tau Delta was revived under new leadership: President Kai Spencer, Vice President Sam Thompson, and Treasurer Brienne Heinssen.  Nineteen new members joined Sigma Tau Delta in December and an induction ceremony was held in the Park Hall Library.  During the spring semester, Sigma Tau Delta members volunteered with the Books for Keeps Program, a nonprofit that works to improve children’s reading achievement by addressing barriers related to the accessibility and appeal of reading material. They also hosted two events: a coffee and study hangout for members at Zombie Donuts and a general body assembly.  Based on member feedback, Sigma Tau Delta plans to host more informal get-togethers, to further their goal of creating community.

The Undergraduate English Association (UEA) also went dormant over the pandemic, but thanks to the leadership of UEA president Nina Meier, the group is flourishing (see "Undergraduate English Association Offers Community and Comradery" in Features).  Since then, they have hosted speakers, gathered for icebreakers beyond campus, toured the depths of the Special Collections Library, and, most recently, hosted a poetry reading. Looking forward, the UEA hopes to expand its study hall hours in the Park Hall library, plan networking opportunities for English majors, and continue to offer a space for community and camaraderie. You can find them every Tuesday in the English Library in Park Hall at 4PM. 

The Genius of Phillis Wheatley Peters: A Poet and Her Legacies: 2023 marks the 250th anniversary of Phillis Wheatley [Peter]’s Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral (1773), the first published book of poetry by a woman of African descent in what would become the United States. A yearlong commemoration of the poet’s life, poetry, and multigenerational impact launched during Black History Month in February and will continue through the Spotlight on the Arts festival in November. The project, led by Dr. Barbara McCaskill (UGA) and Dr. Sarah Robbins (TCU), is a multidisciplinary collaboration between faculty, librarians, and students at both institutions. Virtual and in-person events during Spring Semester 2023 included lectures by Dr. Kim Coles and Dr. Vincent Carretta (both of the University of Maryland), a webinar examining archival holdings connected to Wheatley in the American Antiquarian Society, a workshop focused on eighteenth-century rare books and ephemera in UGA’s Special Collections Library, roundtables featuring national and international scholars of American and British literature, and a tour of eighteenth-century holdings in Princeton University’s “Object Lessons” traveling exhibit at the Georgia Museum of Art. The goal of these events and activities has been to bring attention to Wheatley’s literary productions beyond her book publication; to consider how and why representations of Wheatley have evolved and shifted over time and across generations; to make visible her activism and agency both within slavery and as a wife, mother, and published author in freedom; to gain greater understanding of her influence on transatlantic and Diasporic literature; and to emulate Wheatley’s artistic networks by creating a contemporary community of fans of the poet that bridges academic and nonacademic audiences. English Department Faculty involved in this semester’s planning and events were Drs. David Diamond, Sujata Iyengar, Miriam Jacobson, John Wharton Lowe (who also funded the roundtable with Dr. Carretta), and Susan Rosenbaum. Emerita Professor Elizabeth Kraft provided funds to support doctoral student Tina Borah, who handled social media and developed fliers and publicity for events.