On February 6th, 2024 a group of nine creative writing students led by English Professors Butcher and Pace were able to take a trip to the Association of Writers and Writing Programs (AWP) Conference in Kansas City, Missouri.
The students were able to make this trip thanks to a Theory-to-Practice Grant (TPG) from the university. With Professor Butcher’s help, the students submitted a proposal for their TPG in October of 2023.
To help the students in their application process, they all registered to volunteer at the conference under the work exchange program. This allowed the students to attend the conference free of the usual registration fee which can be hundreds of dollars.
The AWP Conference is the largest writing conference in North America. During the conference, the students were able to attend panels of writers discussing a wide range of topics, learn about MFA programs for creative writing, and attend poetry readings. They were also able to go on a poetry hike, explore Kansas City, and buy way too many books.
The students spent February 6th-10th in Kansas City. They were able to attend a majority of the conference events and only had to miss some of the Saturday events to get back to campus.
This was such an incredible experience for the creative writing students who were able to attend. The students even got to bond with each other and talk more about their writing outside of their usual classroom workshop time.
A group of the students who attend the conference are now hosting an event on Wednesday, March 27th in Crider Lounge from 12 pm-1 pm. During this panel event each of the students will be sharing about their experience at the event as well as some of the things they learned.
Attendees are encouraged to bring lunch and ask questions. The AWP Conference is a wonderful opportunity for anyone interested in writing, and this panel will help students understand if the opportunity is right for them.
Ohio Wesleyan also offers funding to students through the Small Grant Program, which could help fund a student who wants to attend the conference. Next year the AWP Conference will be in Los Angeles, California.
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