WHO WE ARE
Our Teachers
Students earning their MFA in Creative Writing at Chatham University apply to participate in the Words Without Walls program. We currently offer the Words Without Walls Fellowship to an MFA student who teaches for two years at one of our sites and helps administer the program. We also offer opportunities for students to volunteer, earn course credit or complete publishing internships with Words Without Walls.
Words Without Walls teachers regularly find that teaching in alternative spaces is a life changing experience and one they can not forget. Our teachers are committed to continuing their outreach work after graduation and have gone on to create programs at various sites around the country.
Former Words Without Walls teachers have gone on to work in a variety of settings, including::
New Hanover County Jail in North Carolina;
Orleans Parish Prison, in Louisiana;
Lazarus House, a transitional housing facility for those living with HIV and AIDS, in New Orleans;
Our Clubhouse, a support center for those touched by cancer, in Pittsburgh;
Resolve, a drug treatment center in Pittsburgh;
Veteran’s Place, a transitional housing facility for homeless veterans, in Pittsburgh;
Our Students
Words Without Walls students are our biggest inspiration. They generously share their writings with us each week and engage in rigorous examinations of contemporary literature. Our students regularly submit to the PEN America Prison Writing competition, where they have won national recognition for their work. They have also gone on to earn MFA’s in Creative Writing, continue publishing their work and participating in our program long after they leave the facilities where we meet them.
Each year, we award the Sandra Gould Ford Prize to an outstanding student who shows leadership in the classroom and dedication to the craft of creative writing.
Sandra Gould Ford Prize winners:
Lynne Agnew
Will Arrington
Joe Garfield
Terra Lynn
Stephon Hayes
MerShia Tuzlic
Ralph “Malakki” Bolden
Board of Directors
The Words Without Walls Board of Directors include nationally renowned poets and writers; educators; former WWW teachers and students; Chatham alumni; and those working in the field of corrections.
Visiting Writers
We have received generous support from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Advancing the Black Arts in Pittsburgh Fund, and the AW Mellon Fund of the Pittsburgh Foundation to bring these writers to Pittsburgh.
Each year, Words Without Walls brings nationally renowned writers to engage with students at our sites. We have received generous support from The Pittsburgh Foundation to bring these writers to Pittsburgh.
Visit our Upcoming Events page for a complete list of readings and events.
Supporters
We are able to support Words Without Walls with the generous support of:
Laurie Mansell-Reich and Henry Reich
Margaret and Tom Whitford
