Faculty Voices: Marsha Qualey

The MFAC winter residency concluded this past Sunday with a post-ceremony reception, banquet, and entertainment. The high spirits of the final night are always welcome and serve as perfect digestif to the richness of workshops, lectures, intensives that filled the ten days.

Some highlights ...

Our Grads. They have been profiled in our Meet the Grad series, and here's a group shot:

Front row (l-r): Gina DeCiani, Megan Millar, Jeanne Anderson, Miriam Busch, Ashley Lorentz.
Back row (l-r) JJ Austrian, Ellen Kazimer, Shelley Jones, Gary Metivier, Daniel Holly.
Photo courtesy of JJ Austrian.

The announcement of scholarships. Three are awarded at each winter residency.

Randall Bonser was awarded the The Frances and Kermit Rudolf Nonfiction Scholarship,which is a $1,000 annual award given to current students in the program for the most promising manuscript (not already accepted by a publisher) in the field of nonfiction-picture book, easy reader, or a longer nonfiction book. It will be judged on the quality of writing, original research, and innovative format.

Maria Macioce was awarded the $1,000 Jane Resh Thomas Prize in Critical Writing, given to the fourth-semester student who has written the most outstanding critical essay in his/her third semester.

Cheryl Minnema was awarded the annual $5,000 Herman W. Block Memorial Scholarship, given by author Kate DiCamillo and offered to a new student who exhibits significant promise in writing for children and young adults.

And now I must confess a terrible thing: Jane Yolen was again our graduation speaker and again a musical performer at the final banquet, but this reporter has no photo to prove any of it. She even performed a song she adapted for the occasion. You'll have to take my word for it and believe me when I say that she was, in both roles, wonderful.