New Issues Summer's End Celebration

This afternoon's celebration of New Issues Press united former and current WMU authors and students and faculty and community members at Bell's Eccentric Café. New Issues Press Editor Bill Olsen welcomed guests to the readings by poets and writers John Rybicki, Heather Sellers, David Dodd Lee, Diane Seuss, and Jamie D'Agostino. Bonnie Jo Campbell (supported by Managing Editor Marianne Swierenga), auctioned off a plethora of paintings, rarities, and hilarities, and Whiskey before Breakfast provided the musical background. Among the guests were President John Dunn, Provost Tim Greene, and Cynthia Running-Johnson.

news about Vincent Reusch

Jaimy Gordon reports that Vincent Reusch, recent PhD grad, got a job at Concordia College, Minnesota--a fiction position.
Congratulations!

Dan Mancilla

Dan Mancilla, who has his MFA from WMU, and who is entering our PhD program this fall, is one of three finalists for the Chicago Tribune's Nelson Algren Award. (from Jaimy Gordon)

Meet Karl Sandelin: 2009-2010 Distinguished English Department Alumnus

Karl R. Sandelin was born on October 16, 1928, in Helsinki, Finland. At the age of 20, when studying languages at the University of Helsinki, the Institute of International Education granted him a scholarship for a year’s study at Western for which he arrived six weeks late in 1948. Having had only three years of exposure to English in school and with limited comprehension of English, he managed to negotiate through Dr. Brown’s “Shakespeare” and Mrs. Heinrich’s “Rhetoric” classes and learned that expressing oneself in writing was not a chore but an opportunity and a joy. Western granted him an extension and in 1950 he was able to finish his Bachelor’s degree in English, with minors in German and Group Science. Returning to Finland for his compulsory military service, in 1951 Sandelin continued studies at WMU toward his Master’s degree in the Teaching of Languages, which he finished in 1953. In 1954 he began service in the U.S. Army, gained U.S. citizenship, served as tank commander in a training unit and in army intelligence in Germany. Following army service, aided by an ability to communicate ideas and concepts (attributing this to his studies in English) and fluency in multiple languages, his career ultimately was in international commerce. His working career was with Kalsec, a local company that produces spice, herb, hop and vegetable extracts for use in food, beverage and pharmaceutical applications. In 1958 he became Vice President for Production and in 1970 he assumed responsibility for International Operations for Kalsec, overseeing the management of a production facility in Ethiopia and its agricultural production of raw materials. He also directed Kalsec’s worldwide raw material acquisition and the export of Kalsec products, in 1987 receiving the “Michigan Exporter of the Year Award”. Before and after his retirement from Kalsec in 1988, he was engaged in a variety of community activities and volunteer work: Kalamazoo School Board member 1966-70, governor of Rotary District 6360, elected representative to the Rotary International Councils on Legislation, Senior Warden of St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, and founder and President of Kalamazoo’s “Walking Together,” a non-profit community initiative aiming at reducing illnesses that are preventable through increased physical activity. Karl will be honored by the College of Arts & Sciences and the University in late October, and he will address students, faculty, and staff of the English Department during its Annual Awards and Recognition Ceremony on March 25, 2010.

Job opening in Creative Writing/Fiction

Western Michigan University invites applications for a tenure-track academic year position in Creative Writing (Fiction), to begin December 14, 2009, at the rank of Assistant Professor, pending budgetary approval.

Salary: Competitive and commensurate with qualifications and experience, with an excellent benefits package.

Required Qualifications: MFA, Ph.D., or DFA in English required; a significant publication record, including at least one book of prose fiction; a proven record of excellence in undergraduate teaching; a strong promise for excellence in graduate teaching. Experience in any of the following is not required, but will be considered an asset: Editing; publishing; administration; publications in other areas of Creative Writing.

Western Michigan University (WMU), located in Southwest Michigan, is a vibrant, nationally recognized student-centered research institution with an enrollment of nearly 25,000. WMU delivers high-quality undergraduate instruction, has a strong graduate division, and fosters significant research activities. The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching has placed WMU among the 76 public institutions in the nation designated as research universities with high research activities.
Review of applications will begin immediately and will continue until position is filled. Applicants must visit http://www.wmich.edu/hr/careers-at-wmu.htm to apply and should include a letter of application, a vita, graduate transcripts, three letters of recommendation, a non-returnable writing sample and, if available, teaching evaluations to: Dr. Richard Utz, Chair, Department of English, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI 49008-5331. For information on the department, please visit: www.wmich.edu/english.

Western Michigan University is an affirmative action, equal opportunity employer consistent with applicable federal and state law. All qualified applicants are encouraged to apply.