PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Editorial Specialist

(Remote position) Research Square, Durham NC |November 2016 – Present

• Support editorial operations for a number of major academic journals
• Process all incoming manuscript submissions
• Certify author credentials
• Check manuscripts to determine whether they meet certain guidelines, identify potential problems (grammar, formatting, syntax, etc.)
• Exercise attention to detail, as well as strong written and oral communication skills when working both editors and authors

Office Coordinator and Receptionist

Research Square, Durham NC |May 2015 – November 2016

• Organized and hosted company-wide events (such as weekly team lunch, monthly food bank volunteer outing, office parties, quarterly meetings, etc.)
• Worked with VP of Finance & HR to keep office operations/maintenance on budget
• Coordinated with various stakeholders and team managers on outings/company presence at national & international conferences
• Coordinated all aspects of the company-wide quarterly meetings:
  • Booked rental cars/hotels for visiting long-distance employees
  • Helped prepare presentations & assisted with execution of presentations
  • Managed catering and setup, as well as parking for events
• Organized and helped facilitate monthly ISMTE Conference meeting & lecture series
• Utilized MS Office and Adobe Suites, and similar software, on a daily basis

Contributing Editor

Cave Wall Press, Greensboro NC | 2013 – 2017

• Read/Selected contributors’ works
• Maintained subscription lists and mailed out subscription packets/issues
• Consulted on reading series with Scuppernong Books in Greensboro, NC
• PR/social media liaison (Twitter, Facebook, etc.)
• Represented the press/journal at AWP Conference

Outside Evaluator & Guest Lecturer

Advanced Creative Writing Senior Seminar, Elon University | 2012 – 2014 (intermittent)

• Critiqued undergraduate senior portfolios consisting of poetry, fiction, and non-fiction pieces, up to fifty pages in length
• Wrote a letter to each student concerning their work with ways to improve and personalized feedback, including reading lists
• Guest-lectured on the graduate application process, publication opportunities, and experiences/opportunities beyond the undergraduate experience

Guest Editor

PoemoftheWeek.Org, Online poetry journal | Spring 2014 – Fall 2014

• Solicited and selected features/ contributors’ works for publication
• Coordinated interviews with writers and Editor-in-Chief

Arts Instructor

The Arts Center, Carrboro NC | Summer 2013

• Taught kindergarten through high school age attendees
• Created lessons and themed projects, ranging from small arts and crafts (painting, collage) to experimental photography (cyanotypes)

Adjunct English Faculty

Johnson & Wales University, Providence, RI | Fall 2012

• Courses taught: English Composition 1020 and Public Speaking 1030
• Created lesson plans, syllabi and assignments

Graduate Teaching Assistant

Southern Illinois University at Carbondale | 2008 – 2011

• Courses taught: Intro to English 101, Argumentative Writing 102 and Intro to Creative Writing 119
• Created lesson plans, syllabi and assignments

 

GRADUATE EXPERIENCE

President of the Graduate Writers’ Forum | Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, 2010

• Organized the Inaugural and 2^nd Little Grassy Reading Series and Literary Festivals
• Composed grants and proposals to raise funds for visiting writers
• Hosted In-House Graduate Reading series for SIUC MFA candidates
• Facilitated reading exchange program (Writers on the Road) where MFA candidates from universities in a six-hour radius of SIUC came and shared their work with the student body, and—in exchange—invited us to do the same in return
• Worked across the English Department with the Irish Studies Forum, the Office of Graduate Studies, and Grassroots Literary Magazine to procure funds & host events
• Designed posters for events, readings and fundraisers
• Worked with Registered Student Organization financial advisors in filling out legal documents, insurance forms and contracts for visiting writers
• Also, served as Publicity Representative of Graduate Writers’ Forum from Fall 2008 until the Spring 2010.

Guest Lecturer | Advanced Poetry Workshop, Instructor: Rodney Jones, SIUC, Spring 2010

• Critiqued students’ works and led discussions on the workshop’s assigned texts
• Delivered a lecture on the use of the line and music in poetry
• Created handouts and gave lecture on revision strategies

Writing Tutor | Morris/Trueblood Writing Centers, SIU-Carbondale, 2009 – 2010

• Mentored graduate and undergraduate students on their papers and assignments
• Led training events

Guest Lecturer | Young Writers Workshop, SIU-Carbondale, Summer 2010

• Led lecture on the use of sound in poetry, authored accompanying assignments and handout materials
• Created lesson plans and participated in small group breakout sessions

Special Projects Coordinator/Assistant Editor |Crab Orchard Review, SIUC, 2009 – 2010

• Logged and reviewed submissions into the database for COR regular and contest submissions (Crab Orchard Series First Book and Open Competition awards)
• Packaged, labeled, and mailed issues of Crab Orchard Review to subscribers
• Reviewed and edited competition winners’ manuscripts, verified research and worked on cover/jacket design selections
• Designed websites for the Graduate Writers Forum and the Crab Orchard Review

 

AWARDS | FELLOWSHIPS | GRANTS

2017

• Third Place for “Helium” | Galway Kinnell Poetry contest, Pawtucket Arts Festival
• Semi-Finalist for Camino | The Frost Place Chapbook Competition

2016

• Winner for “Bland Meditations” | Annual Writing Contest, Fugue, University of Idaho
• Semi-Finalist for Camino | The Claudia Emerson Poetry Chapbook Award, jmww Press

2015

• Winner for “The Weems Stormglass Mysterious Weather Predictor” | Sweet Corn Poetry Prize, Flyway: Journal of Writing & Environment, Iowa State University
• Honorable Mention for “In the Latter Days” | The Claire Keyes Poetry Prize, Soundings East, Salem State University
• Semi-Finalist for Camino |The Frost Place Chapbook Competition

2014

• Semi-Finalist for Scrap Iron | Paumanok Award, Farmingdale State College
• Runner-Up for “Red Hand” | The Wabash Prize for Poetry, Sycamore Review, Purdue University
• Finalist for El Camino and Other Poems | Two Sylvias Press First Annual Chapbook Award
• Recipient of Walter E. Dakin Fellowship in Poetry, Sewanee Writers’ Conference
• Finalist for El Camino and Other Poems | The Frost Place Chapbook Competition

2013

• Finalist for Scrap Iron | Julie Suk Poetry Prize, Jacar Press (Post-Publication Prize)
• Runner-up for El Camino and Other Poems | The Ruby Irene Chapbook Prize in Poetry, Arcadia Magazine
• Semi-Finalist for El Camino and Other Poems | The David Blair Memorial Chapbook Prize, Organic Weapon Arts
• Honorable Mention for “Tijuana Bibles” | Porter Fleming Literary Competition
• Recipient of the Elon College Distinguished Alumni Award in the Arts and Humanities, Elon University
• Winner of the Under-The-Radar Scholarship | Frequency Providence: A Writing Community

2012

• Finalist for the MacColl Johnson Fellowship, The Rhode Island Foundation
• Winner for Scrap Iron (first book manuscript) |Agha Shahid Ali Poetry Prize, University of Utah Press
• Featured Poem of the Month for “Seven Places I Have Found My Grandmother in the Last Six Years” | The Pinch, The University of Memphis

2011

• Semi-Finalist for poetry manuscript | River Styx Poetry Award, River Styx Magazine
• Finalist for poetry manuscript | New Letters Literary Award, New Letters Magazine
• Third Place for “Mother(’s)-” | Roxana Rivera Memorial Poetry Contest, SIU-Carbondale
• Finalist for “On Thunderstorms” | Third Coast Poetry Prize, Western Michigan University
• Recipient of travel grant awarded by Southern Illinois University-Carbondale, exchange with National University of Ireland-Galway, Spring Semester
• Honorable Mention for “Jersey Devil” | The Academy of American Poets Prize

2010

• Winner for “Our Lady of Mount Carmel” | Yellowwood Poetry Prize, Yalobusha Review, The University of Mississippi

2009

• Finalist for poetry manuscript | New Letters Literary Award, New Letters Magazine
• Semi-Finalist for “Fidel Castro Visits a Frat Party” | New Millennium Poetry Contest, New Millennium Writings
• Finalist for “Burning Down the Camper” | Guy Owen Poetry Prize, Southern Poetry Review, Armstrong Atlantic State University
• Winner for “True Oysters” | Delaware Bay Days Poetry Competition, Bayshore Discovery Project

2008

• Finalist for “Todo Que Saben Es Trabajo” | NC State Poetry Contest, NC State University
• Winner for “Turning Over” | Fredrick Hartmann Award for Poetry, Elon University

 

PUBLICATIONS

BOOK

• Scrap Iron (Agha Shahid Ali Prize in Poetry winner), University of Utah Press, 2013

POETRY

• Fugue Iss. 51, “Bland Meditations.” University of Idaho, Summer 2017
• Flyway: Journal of Writing & Environment, “The Weems Stormglass Mysterious Weather Predictor.” Iowa State University, Fall 2015
• Chautauqua, “What Einstein Saw Before Typing Out His Theory of Relativity.” University of North Carolina-Wilmington, Summer 2015
• Soundings East Vol. 35, “In the Latter Days.” Salem State University, Spring 2015
• Sycamore Review Vol. 26 Iss. 2, “Red Hand.” Purdue University, Spring 2015
• The Cortland Review Iss. 66, “Santiago de Compostela.” Online Journal, Winter/Spring 2015
• Rock & Sling, “A letter about these nights in Burlington NC” and “What’s Lost By The River.” Whitworth University, Spring 2014
• Driftless Review, “On Locks” and “Every Night Since Viana.” University of Wisconsin-Platteville, Spring 2014
• Midwest Quarterly, “Tijuana Bibles.” Pittsburg State University, Spring 2014
• Prime Number Magazine Iss. 53, “Agape,” “Mix-tape (#3) With the One That I’ve Played Too Much,” and “Five Cigarettes.” Press 53, Spring 2014
• Blue Earth Review, “On Spring Coming.” Minnesota State University-Mankato, Spring 2014
• The Missouri Review, “Aubade.” Poem of the Week Feature, University of Missouri-Columbia, Spring 2014
• Jabberwock Review Vol. 34.2, “Helium.” Mississippi State University, Winter 2014
• Antioch Review Vol. 72 No. 1, “Pastoral.” Antioch College, Winter 2014
• Yemassee Iss. 21.1, “On Dream Catchers.” University of South Carolina, Winter/Fall 2014
• Rappahannock Review Iss. 1.1, “Mix-tape (#4) With the One I Still Haven’t Learned the Lyrics to.” Mary Washington University, Winter 2013
• Mead: The Magazine of Literature and Libations, “Mix-tape (#5) With the One That Always Breaks My Heart.” Online journal, Winter 2013
• storySouth Iss. 35, “A Borrowed Childhood Memory, Hammonton, 1974.” Online journal, Winter 2013
• Innisfree Poetry Journal Iss. 16, “Below Corson’s Inlet Bridge” and “Ned Kelly Exiled in New Zealand.” Online Journal, Winter 2013
• New Madrid, “Puente la Reina, First Movement.” Murray State University, Winter 2013
• Burnside Review Vol. 9 No. 1, “A Bridge is like a Tongue.” Print journal, Winter 2013
• Waccamaw Journal No.12, “In Vineland.” Coastal Carolina University, Fall 2013
• The MacGuffin Vol. XXX, No. 1, “Self-Portrait at 13.” Schoolcraft College, Fall 2013
• Cave Wall No. 12, “from The Island Meditations.” Print journal, Fall 2013
• Beloit Poetry Journal Vol. 64 No. 1, “The Coming Apart.” Print journal, Fall 2013
• San Pedro River Review Vol. 5 No 1 & Vol. 5 No. 2, “Compostela” and “Finisterre.” Print journal, Summer/Fall 2013
• Crab Orchard Review Vol. 18 No. 2, “On Convergence.” Southern Illinois University-Carbondale, Summer/Fall 2013
• McNeese Review, “Flexible Diet.” McNeese State University, Summer 2013
• Southern Humanities Review Vol. 47 No. 3, “Donation Doctor’s Visit.” Auburn University, Summer 2013
• diode Vol. 6 No. 2, “What Cheer?” and “Jacobaea Vulgaris.” Online journal, Summer 2013
• Virginia Quarterly Review, “El Camino.” VQR Instapoetry Series, University of Virginia, Spring 2013
• Georgetown Review Vol. 14 No. 1, “On Thunderstorms.” Georgetown College, Spring 2013
• Booth Online Journal, “A Borrowed Childhood Memory, Alloway, 4 July 1967.” Butler University, Spring 2013
• The Labletter 4^th edition, “Blackrock Diving Tower.” Oregon Lab, Winter 2012
• The Pinch Vol. 32 No. 2, “Lily of the Valley” and “Seven Places I Have Found My Grandmother in the Last Six Years.” The University of Memphis, Fall 2012
• Connotation Press: An Online Artifact, “The Island Meditations.” Online journal, Fall 2012
• Harpur Palate Vol. 12 No.1, “A Borrowed Childhood Memory, New York City, 1923.” SUNY-Binghamton, Summer & Fall 2012
• The Hollins Critic Vol. XLIX No. 3, “On Conversion.” Hollins University, Summer 2012
• Columbia Poetry Review No. 25, “So Intricate, So Inconceivably Complex.” Columbia College-Chicago, Spring 2012
• Arroyo Literary Review Vol. 4, “On Garages.” California State University-East Bay, Spring 2012
• Mason’s Road, “Letter about my last night in Carbondale, Illinois.” Fairfield University, Winter 2011
• North American Review Vol. 296 No. 1, “Scrap Iron.” The University of Northern Iowa at Cedar Falls, Winter 2011
• West Branch No. 69, “Drinking Stories,” “The Same Idea” and “Marriage.” Bucknell University, Fall/Winter 2011
• Interrobang?! Vol. 6, “On Sea Glass,” “Mother(’s)-” and “A Turn of Phrase.” Print/online journal, Fall/Winter 2011
• The South Carolina Review Vol. 44 No. 1, “His Grandmother as a Wind Chime.” Clemson University, Fall 2011
• Copper Nickel No. 17, “Turkey Point.” University of Colorado-Denver, Fall 2011
• storySouth Iss. 32, “Kansas Burning.” Online journal, Fall 2011
• The Pinch Vol. 31 No. 2, “Milford Sound.” The University of Memphis, Fall 2011
• Prairie Schooner Vol. 85 No. 3, “Hounds” and “Working First Shift at the Progresso Soups Factory.” University of Nebraska Press, Summer/Fall 2011
• Poet Lore Vol. 106 No. 1/2, “Midnight Shift.” The Writer’s Center, Spring/Summer 2011
• The Greensboro Review No. 89, “The Root Whiskers.” University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Spring 2011
• Quiddity Vol. 4 No. 1, “Palace Depression.” Benedictine University at Springfield, Spring 2011
• The Labletter 13^th edition, “Standing in the Atlantic Ocean with Tesla’s Pigeon.” Oregon Lab, Spring 2011
• La Fovea, “The Sunken House, The Rough Floor,” and “Self-Portrait with a Mouse in my Future Mother-In-Law’s Kitchen.” Online journal, Spring 2011
• Copper Nickel No. 14, “Field Lessons.” The University of Colorado-Denver, Fall/Winter 2010
• Cold Mountain Review Vol. 39 No. 1, “The Pecking Order.” Appalachian State University, Fall 2010
• The Pinch Vol. 30 No. 2, “The Group” and “Our Lady of the Water Glass.” The University of Memphis, Fall 2010
• Los Angeles Review Vol. 8, “Jersey Devil” and “From These Split Ends.” Fall 2010
• Milk Money Vol. 8, “By the Margin of Water” and “Bivalve, Cumberland County.” Summer/Fall 2010
• Packingtown Review Vol. 2, “A History of Nut Allergies.” University of Illinois at Chicago, Spring 2010
• Yalobusha Review Vol. 15, “Our Lady of Mount Carmel.” The University of Mississippi, Winter/Spring 2010
• Iron Horse Literary Review Vol. 11 No. 6, “On Peeling Skin.” Texas Tech University, Winter 2009
• Southern Poetry Review Vol. 47 No. 2, “Burning Down the Camper.” Armstrong Atlantic State University, Summer 2009
• New Delta Review Vol. 26 No. 2, “Fidel Castro Visits a Frat Party.” Louisiana State University, Summer 2009
• The Allegheny Review Vol. 26, “Todo Que Saben Es Trabajo.” Allegheny College, 2008
• Colonnades Art and Literary Journal Vol. 59, “Growing Up in East Vineland” and “Turning Over.” Elon University, 2008
• Coraddi Summer Arts and Literary Magazine, “Turning Over” and “Effigy.” University of North Caroline at Greensboro, Summer 2007
• Colonnades Art and Literary Journal Vol. 58, “The Mariner.” Elon University, 2007