The Association of Writers & Writing Programs (AWP) has recently launched the all-new AWP HBCU Fellowship Program, which aims to uplift the work HBCU faculty are doing within their creative writing programs and encourage the participation of HBCUs within AWP. This program will kick off at the 2023 Conference & Bookfair in Seattle, Washington.

Thanks to a generous grant from the NEA, the program will award two HBCU faculty and four HBCU students with fellowships. Applications for faculty fellows are open through October 31, while applications for student fellows will open in November.

Fellowships for faculty include a $4,000 honorarium, paid travel expenses and lodging for the duration of the conference, and publication in The Writer’s Chronicle regarding their experience. AWP is also excited to announce that the selected fellows will have the opportunity to collaborate closely with A.J. Verdelle, an HBCU professor and award-winning author of The Good Negress and Miss Chloe: A Memoir of Literary Friendship with Toni Morrison. As Verdelle and the faculty fellows discuss ways to support creative writing endeavors at HBCUs, they will also serve as mentors to the student fellows to establish new connections.

Active HBCU faculty, both part-time and full-time, are encouraged to apply. Applications for student fellows will open in November.

To read more about this exciting opportunity, please see our full press release in our press room.