Jan. 11, 2005

Peace Corps volunteers share personal journals at Writing on Wednesday event Jan. 19

Morningside students will read from the journals of Peace Corps volunteers Robby Mason, Jason Walker, and others at Writing on Wednesdays on Wednesday, Jan. 19, from 12:45 p.m. to 1:40 p.m. in the Hickman Dining Room of the Olsen Student Center.

Mason graduated from Morningside in 2001 and is currently serving as a Peace Corps volunteer in Zitwe, Zambia. He works as an aquaculture extension agent.

Walker also graduated from Morningside in 2001 and enrolled in the Peace Corps shortly afterwards. He served for 10 months as an English teacher in Andapa, Madagascar, before being evacuated because of political unrest. He is currently pursuing a graduate degree at Western Illinois University in Macomb, Ill.

Neither Walker nor Mason will be present for the readings, however, Roxanne Denysiuk, a recruiter for the Peace Corps, will be on hand for the event.

Writing on Wednesdays (WOW), formerly known as Friday is Writing Day (FIWD), will meet most Wednesdays throughout the school year from 12:45 p.m. - 1:40 p.m. The program is now in its 17th year and is designed to feature writers and their works, from journals to published pieces. Writers of all types from the campus and community read their work, followed by informal discussions of the writings. The sessions are free and open to the public and meet in the Hickman Dining Room, unless otherwise specified. Participants are invited to bring a brown bag lunch or purchase lunch in the college cafeteria.

Additional presentations for upcoming WOW events include:

Jan. 26 - Writing book and film reviews. Morningside students read their reviews and discuss the art of book and film reviewing.

Feb. 2 - Celebration of African-American writers. Readings from a variety of works by people of color will be featured. The event is part of the national African-American Read-In 2005.

Feb. 9 - "West Coast Girls." Michael "Tug" Buse, assistant professor of mass communication at Morningside, will read this original story.

Feb. 16 - When We Were Students. - Morningside faculty and staff read from papers they wrote in college.

Feb. 23 - Issues in Nursing. Mary Kovarna, associate professor of nursing at Morningside, will have her students read letters they wrote to legislators about health care issues.

March 9 - Cheryl Tevis, Morningside alumna and Senior Farm Issues Editor of "Successful Farming" will read articles about rural women and discuss magazine writing and editing.

March 16 - Endangered Species Dialogue. Dr. Jim Stroh, associate professor of biology at Morningside, will have students read papers from his Natural History of Plants and Animals class.

March 30 - Dr. Marty Knepper, professor and chair of English at Morningside, will have students read papers from her Women and Literature class. Hickman Dining Room.

April 6 - Students from various sections of Composition and Communication classes will share essays.

April 13 - Service learning reflections . Dr. Patrick McKinlay, associate professor of history and political science at Morningside, will have students share readings about their experiences with service learning projects.

April 20 - Winners of the "Kiosk" contest and the Excellence in Writing competition will read from their prize-winning non-fiction, poetry, and fiction. The "Kiosk," an anthology of creative writing, is published annually by the English department.