Matthew Shenoda

Matthew Shenoda

Poetry

Matthew Shenoda is a writer, professor, and university administrator whose poems and essays have appeared in a variety of newspapers, journals, radio programs, and anthologies. He has been twice nominated for a Pushcart Prize and his work has been supported by the California Arts Council and the Lannan Foundation among others.

His debut collection of poems, Somewhere Else, was named one of 2005's debut books of the year by Poets & Writers magazine and was winner of a 2006 American Book Award. He is also the author of Seasons of Lotus, Seasons of Bone, editor of Duppy Conqueror: New & Selected Poems by Kwame Dawes, and most recently author of Tahrir Suite: Poems, winner of the 2015 Arab American Book Award, and with Kwame Dawes editor of Bearden’s Odyssey: Poets Respond to the Art of Romare Bearden.

Shenoda teaches in the fields of ethnic studies and creative writing and has held several faculty and administrative positions at various institutions. Formerly the Assistant Provost for Equity and Diversity at CalArts and the Dean of Academic Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at Columbia College Chicago, he is currently the Vice President of Social Equity & Inclusion and Professor of Literary Arts and Studies at Rhode Island School of Design (RISD). Additionally, he is a founding editor of the African Poetry Book Fund. Visit his website.

Photo by Joe Mazza

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