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Summer Round-Up

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Ninth Letter Launch Party

Ninth Letter will be holding a public release party reading over Zoom this Thursday, July 15 at 6:00 CT. The reading will feature several authors from the latest edition, including Anurag Andra, Caryn Cardello, Esther Lin, Michael Martone, and Dennison Schultz, as well as past contributor Diane Seuss. We hope you will join us in celebrating the new issue!

Join Zoom Meeting:
https://illinois.zoom.us/j/88634006382?pwd=NDZPTmZTbDhHdWc3b0R6SGUvQ2VCUT09
Meeting ID: 886 3400 6382
Password: 9L

Congratulations to Undergraduate Researchers!

The Office of Undergraduate Research is proud to showcase the award winners for outstanding presentations as well as honorable mentions. 

Let’s give a shout-out to one of our own recent graduates, English major Issy Marquez, whose project Reggaeton’s Resistance: Bad Bunny & the Aesthetics & Politics of Perreo was deemed outstanding!  Issy’s research mentor for this project was Professor Sandra Ruiz (Department of Latina/Latino Studies and Department of English). 

For more news on undergraduate research opportunities see https://undergradresearch.illinois.edu/programs/explore.html.  Following is one in particular that some of you might want to check out: 

Congressional Internship Program — CIP provides Latina/o undergraduates of all majors with paid placement in congressional offices for a period of 10 weeks. Interns will learn how the legislative system works, respond to constituent inquiries, write policy briefs, gain work experience, and participate in community service. Spring 2022 Internship deadline is October 1, 2021.

message from the HPRC: a great job opportunity!
This job opening just appeared on the U of I Research Park job board, and it would be a great opportunity for an English or Creative Writing major (yes, those are “related majors”). 
 
Don’t let the words “digital” and “communications” scare you off! There are currently lots of English/CW alumni working in these areas — and a job like this is a great way to get experience relevant to a career. 
 
And yes, while AbbVie will probably never ask a student for an analysis of Othello or their most recent poem, the courses where English/CW majors write those things teach skills that will help you succeed in a job like this. Check out the list of “Preferred Qualifications” in the job ad. 
 
 
If you are interested, but unsure how to put together the resume and writing sample that will make you a compelling candidate, the HPRC can help! You can just email humanitiesprc@illinois.edu OR make an appointment at https://go.illinois.edu/HPRCadvising.
 
save the date: Careers in Publishing event

English alumna Dominique Moore, Acquisitions Editor at the University of Illinois Press, will be speaking about her experience in the world of publishing on September 29 at 5pm.  More details will follow, but for those of you looking toward a career in publishing/editing, get this on your calendar now!

An opportunity for prospective graduate students

The MUSE Scholars Program  is intended for prospective English graduate students from underrepresented groups, including African American, Latinx and Chicanx, Asian American, and Indigenous peoples. It aims to introduce students to a robust culture of mentoring essential for a rewarding graduate school experience, and a thriving life in academia. You can read more about our first two cohorts of MUSE scholars here.

The all-expenses paid workshop will allow students to learn more about the English department, visit graduate classes, meet faculty and graduate students, receive feedback on their application materials for graduate school, and present their research to faculty.

Students can learn more about the workshop and submit an application here.  The deadline for applications is September 3.

pre-health chats

The Pre-Health Team will be hosting four sessions of “Illini Pre-Health Chats: What is Pre-Health?” for incoming students the end of July/early August. These will be led by the Pre-Health Ambassadors and one of the Pre-Health advisors will be available as well. This is a great opportunity for new students in any major who are interested in a health-related career to ask questions regarding pre-reqs, clinical experience, research, volunteering and more before they arrive on campus this August. Below are the dates/times and zoom info.

Tuesday, July 20 at 5 pm
Meeting ID: 835 6999 3140
Passcode: 269971

Friday, July 23 at noon
Meeting ID: 862 2672 1771
Passcode: 145657

Friday, July 30 at 4 pm
Meeting ID: 824 6652 0950
Passcode: 537066

Thursday, August 5 at noon
Meeting ID: 833 6782 4870
Passcode: 724864

I STAR positions open

After a 15 month hiatus, the Office of Undergraduate Admissions is planning to provide in-person tours again this fall 2021 semester! They are currently seeking to hire new student representatives to serve as I STARs, campus tour guides. The application for this position is now open: https://enroll.illinois.edu/register/fall2021istar. The deadline to apply is Wednesday, July 21st and a short job description can be found on the application as well.

courses of interest

CW 199: Mind Music–Writing the Lyric Essay
The lyric essay is a highly flexible hybrid form that blends the musical, imagistic impulses of poetry with the ranging, exploratory mode of creative nonfiction. We’ll read and examine an array of contemporary authors who write in this shape-shifting form, including Eula Biss, Anne Carson, and Claudia Rankine, among others. And you’ll practice the form yourself by writing your own original lyric essays.  Learn more about the course in Professor Hassinger’s video introduction here:

INFO 199:  Intro to Video Game Industry
This class will review the video game industry over the last 35 years with a focus on how it has evolved and where it is heading in terms of genres, development methods, products, and monetization.  We will review how personalities, technology, and design came together to create some of the most impactful games and biggest entertainment products in history. We will use game play sessions to review some of these key games of the past and discuss their impact.  Additionally we will review the industry positions and learn effective ways to prepare and showcase talent for those that are interested in a career in the industry.  A key element will be a focus on the social and humanitarian issues faced by the industry over time and how they are being handled going forward. A video promo is at this website: https://go.illinois.edu/INFO199.

HIST 207: Digital Documentary Publishing
SourceLab is a digital humanities research collective, and students who want to learn about digital documentary publishing and research are invited to sign up for HIST 207.  The course serves as an introduction to the craft of publishing historical materials, with a special focus on how to publish the past in the digital age. Assignments will include historical and methodological readings, as well as hands-on instruction in digital publishing techniques. Skills taught include historical research, content development, project management, and copyright analysis. Check out some of the published editions produced by undergraduates: https://iopn.library.illinois.edu/journals/sourcelab. 

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Weekly Round-Up

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Important Reminder!  You have between now and May 27 to elect the “pass COVID/no pass COVID (PZ/NZ)” option instead of a letter grade for any of your courses.  For more information, see this FAQ!

NCSA SPin internships

NCSA has a history of nurturing innovative concepts, and some of the best ideas have come from highly motivated, creative undergraduate students. The Students Pushing Innovation (SPIN) internship program was launched to provide University of Illinois undergraduates with the opportunity to participate in hands-on research and contribute to interdisciplinary projects covering focused research areas in Culture and Society, Earth and Environment, Bioinformatics and Health Sciences, Material and Manufacturing, Data and Computational Sciences, Physics and Astronomy, and Digital Agriculture. The SPIN program is now accepting applications for the 2021-2022 academic year. To apply, please visit our website, spin.ncsa.illinois.edu, and click on the “Mentors” tab to learn about the SPIN projects, and then click on the “Apply” tab. Applications are due by midnight June 21, 2021.

SPIN Academic Year 2021-22 program details:

  • Program dates: August 23, 2021 – May 4, 2022
  • Work 5 hours/week for 16 weeks each semester
  • SPIN interns earn $12.50 per hour and are paid as Undergraduate Hourly employees
  • Open to any UIUC undergraduate student in good academic standing
  • No restriction on year of study or major
  • International students are eligible
HPRC Career camp!

This week, the HPRC is offering a Summer 2021 Career Camp. They designed this event after hearing a number of graduating seniors say that they were waiting until classes ended to plan their next steps, ad they’re offering a series of short sessions designed to help get our newest alumns started on the job search.

The material is, however, relevant to students at all stages of their education, and they invite any interested humanities students to take part, regardless of their year.

Students can sign up here.

HPRC Summer Career Camp, May 24 – 28

How to Get a Job with Your Major
Demystifying the job search for humanities majors
Monday, May 24, 4 – 5pm

Grad School and Gap Years
Using your time effectively as you plan your next steps
Tuesday, May 25, 4 – 5pm

Resumes, Cover Letters, Writing Samples
Promoting your strengths as a humanities major
Wednesday, May 26, 4 – 5pm

Networking and Interviewing
LinkedIn, informational interviewing, acing the job interview
Thursday, May 27, 4 – 5pm

Students can also sign up for individual career counseling conversations the day after a 4pm session to apply what they’ve learned to their particular situation. 
  • Tuesday, May 25, 1 – 3:30pm: figure out what YOU want to do with your major. 
  • Wednesday, May 26, 1 – 3:30pm: think through your grad school/gap year options.
  • Thursday, May 27, 1 – 3:30pm: develop, update, or review your job search documents.
  • Friday, May 28, 1 – 3:30pm: get help with LinkedIn profile, identifying potential mentors, preparing for interviews.
great new course open to all: CW 199

Find out more about Amy Hassinger’s new CW class, Mind Music: Writing the Lyric Essay.  Click on the image below to watch a video in which she talks about the class and what it will entail!

 








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Weekly Round-Up

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Important Reminder!  You will have between May 22 and May 27 to elect the “pass COVID/no pass COVID (PZ/NZ)” option instead of a letter grade for any of your courses.  For more information, see this FAQ!

MFA Public Reading:

The third-year MFA students in Creative Writing will be giving their public reading on Zoom: Saturday May 15 at 1:00. This year, the graduating students are Emmilea O’Toole, Cole Piedimonte, Beth Pearl, Erich Slimak, and Kyle Russell. Each will give a brief reading from their Final Projects. Come out and help celebrate their graduation and Mastery of the Fine Art of Creative Writing!

Zoom Link: https://illinois.zoom.us/j/87664665571?pwd=Q2RTTk9aT0tLT0VzK0JWdU1rMzNEZz09

Meeting ID: 876 6466 5571
Password: CWMFA

montage arts journal 2020-2021 issue:

The latest issue of Montage Arts Journal is available to purchase!  Congratulations to all the featured writers and artists, and thanks to the editors for all their hard work putting it together.  To all the creative writers out there who are hoping to be published some day, why not submit something to Montage next year?  Keep an eye out in the fall semester for a call for submissions.

summer address changes:

Students, if you are leaving campus for the summer, please update your Student Location address in Student Self-Service:

    • In Self-Service, select “University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign”.
    • Log in using your NetID and Password
    • In the Main Menu, select “Personal Information”.
    • In the Personal Information Menu, select “Addresses & Phones”.
    • Under the “Student Location” address, click the “Current” link.
    • Update the “Valid From This Date” field with the date you will be leaving campus. Please note the date must be entered as MM/DD/YYYY, for example, 01/25/2021.
    • Update your address to your location for the summer.
    • Click “Submit” to save your Student Location address.
recruiting LAS 100 Interns for fA21:

Calling all LAS international students! Come be a part of the LAS 100 intern experience and receive paid summer training and 8 weeks of continued professional development during the Fall semester. LAS 100 interns are empathetic international students dedicated to supporting other international students during their first term at Illinois. Interns assist international students in adjusting to the university by sharing their own experiences of moving beyond their comfort zones. They are instrumental to the student experience as they facilitate weekly group discussions on diverse topics and assist students in completing their group projects and presentations. Through this opportunity, interns gain first-hand experience in problem solving, group facilitation, and cross-cultural communication. You can learn more and access the Handshake application here by logging in with your Net ID and password. If you have questions, contact Nikia Brown, Associate Director of Intercultural & Global Learning-International Student Experience, at nikiab@illinois.edu.

intern at the women’s resources center:

It’s that time of year again! The WRC is currently accepting applications for Advocacy, Programming, and Marketing & Communications interns. Links to applications are below, and they will remain open until all positions are filled. Please note that applications are only open to current UIUC students.

Advocacy Intern Application

Programming and Marketing & Communications Intern Application

Summer and Fall Internships at ATLAS:

The ATLAS Internship Program is now accepting applications for any College of LAS students who are interested in learning how to integrate their course of study with technology-based internships. Positions currently open include VR content creator, social media specialist, website/newsletter content, and documentation and workflow specialist. Apply here.

Career Workshops at Career Camp:

You are invited to attend the following workshops at Career Camp the week of May 24.

Internships for Humanities Students:

See below for a list of available internships the their application deadlines:








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End-of-Break Round Up

kevin T. Early Memorial scholarship for first-year poets

The Creative Writing Program would like to announce the 2020-2021 academic year’s Kevin T. Early Memorial Scholarship. This scholarship is made possible from an endowment by William and Donna Early in memory of their son, a poet, Kevin T. Early. It awards $2000 to a student with freshman standing at UIUC for the 2020-2021 school year. The deadline for application is January 28, 2021.

For consideration, students must submit 5 poems via email to John Dudek, the Associate Director of Creative Writing at: jdudek4@illinois.edu. The complete manuscript should not exceed 5 pages (so 1 poem to a page). Submissions should be attached to the email as .docx (Word) files.

The subject line of the email should read: “EARLY PRIZE SUBMISSION: Last name.” The body of the email should include your name, address, phone number, e-mail, UIN, and the titles of your poems. Your name is not to appear on the entry file itself. 

Secondary education minor application due by Feb 1

The Spring application for Secondary Education Minor will close February 1st. If you are a Sophomore who has completed all the pre-reqs for applying and have above a 2.5 in all GPAs, you should apply at this time.

The application can be found  here: https://education.illinois.edu/programs/information-for/ui-students-applying-to-the-minor

For questions and concerns, please set up a meeting with Amanda Heinsman, Academic Advisor to Secondary Education Minors, using this link Appointments for Secondary Education Advising – Online scheduling (oncehub.com). Also, Amanda will be happy to help with application essays if you would like someone to look over them.

Apply for NCSA’s SPIN Internships by Feb 15!

The National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA) has a history of nurturing innovative concepts, and some of the best ideas have come from highly motivated, creative undergraduate students. The Students Pushing INnovation (SPIN) internship program was launched to provide University of Illinois undergraduates with the opportunity to participate in hands-on research and contribute to interdisciplinary projects covering focused research areas in Culture and Society, Earth and Environment, Bioinformatics and Health Sciences, Material and Manufacturing, Data and Computational Sciences, Physics and Astronomy, and Digital Agriculture. The SPIN program is now accepting applicants for the Summer 2021 session. To apply, please visit our website, spin.ncsa.illinois.edu, and click on the “Mentors” tab to learn about the summer projects, and then click on the “Apply” tab. The applications are due February 15, 2021.

SPIN Summer 2021 session information:

  • Program dates: June 7 – July 30, 2021
  • Work 20 hours/week for 8 weeks
  • SPIN interns earn $12.50 per hour and are paid as Undergraduate Hourly employees
  • Any UIUC undergraduate student in good academic standing
  • No restriction on year of study or major
  • International students are eligible

COVID-19 note: NCSA adheres to the remote-work protocol mandated by the University of Illinois until the restrictions are lifted. SPIN interns will be allowed to work remotely this summer if NCSA continues following the remote-work protocol due to the pandemic. Otherwise, the SPIN program will be considering case-by-case applicant circumstances, and interns may be allowed to work remotely.

Upcoming HPRC Events

Sign up for one or more of the following zoom events through Handshake; for more info and links to each event see https://humanitiesprc.web.illinois.edu/.

Jan 21 at 4 pm – Senior Series: Where and How to Start that Job Search. Get some tips for getting started, knowing where to look for job openings, making use of campus resources (including virtual career fair). We’ll have a brief presentation, followed by Q&A.

Jan 26 at 4 pm – 6 pm – Focus Group: Seniors. Meet up with us and fellow students to ask questions, compare notes, get advice (no presentation — just friendly chat!)

Jan 27 at 4 pm- 6 pm– How to Maximize LinkedIn and Handshake. Get tips for curating your profile, making connections, and using these platforms to get hired.

Illinois Business Council Virtual Info Night
 
Business Council is a professional organization on campus, welcoming to students in ALL majors, that focuses on developing well-rounded individuals to explore their passions in any given career.  They will be holding a virtual information night is on Monday, January 25, 2021, at 7:30 pm.  See https://illinoisbusinesscouncil.com/contact/ for more information and a zoom link. 
ILC Spring 2021 Training Opportunities-
https://leadership.illinois.edu/spring-2021

Online Blended Inclusion i-Program
In a blended format (online self-paced learning and facilitated discussion via Zoom), participants will investigate concepts such as equity, equality, diversity, inclusion, and privilege. To learn more about this i-Program, go to http://leadership.illinois.edu/i-programs.
Participants must fully complete the self-paced module at least five (5) days prior to participating in the Zoom discussion session.
• Registration Opens- January 25th
• Registration Closes- February 19th
• Compass Modules Due- February 22nd at 11:59pm
• Zoom Session (mandatory)- February 27th from 10am-12pm

Online Blended Ignite i-Program
In a blended format (online self-paced learning and facilitated discussion via Zoom), participants will investigate concepts such as systems thinking, coalition building, and approaches to leading change initiatives. To learn more about this i-Program, go to http://leadership.illinois.edu/i-programs.
Participants must fully complete the self-paced module at least five (5) days prior to participating in the Zoom discussion session.
• Registration Opens- February 19th
• Registration Closes- March 11th
• Compass Modules Due- March 14th at 11:59pm
• Zoom Session (mandatory)- March 19th from 10am-12pm

Online Integrity i-Program
In a self-paced format, participants will investigate their personal values and the intersection of ethics and integrity through online activities. To learn more about this i-Program, go to http://leadership.illinois.edu/i-programs.
Students will complete guided activities, watch videos, and respond to case studies. This module takes about 5 hours to complete.
• Registration Opens- March 19th
• Registration Closes- April 21st
• Compass Modules Due- April 24th at 11:59pm

ILC Workshop Wednesday Series
The ILC offers a workshop series on Wednesdays throughout the semester open to all Illinois students. Students can participate in any of the workshops whenever the workshop is being offered. These workshops are being facilitated in real time and are being offered online only. The link to the Zoom meeting will be shared to those who registered prior to the workshop. See https://leadership.illinois.edu/workshops for details. 

We CU Community Engaged Scholars Program

The We CU Community Engaged Scholars program empowers students to make a positive impact in the community while building their resume/CV and enriching their university experience. We CU honors students for their community-based work and provides them with training, connection to like minded peers, access to service opportunities with partner organizations, and support from We CU program leaders. Scholars will complete all projects individually or as part of a course or group and track their service hours and activities online.

Learn more during an information session at 4 p.m. on Thursday, January 28. Register for the info session even if you can’t attend so that you will receive a link to the recording and instructions for joining the program.

Looking for an interesting US Minority Culture Gen Ed? 

Check out CWL  204: US Border Literatures and Cultures with Eric Calderwood!  Exploration of the cultures, experiences, and conditions of people living on and around the borders of the United States. In particular, this semester the course will consider the ways literary and cultural production can help us understand the emergence—and the emergency—of climate change. Through the study of fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and film, we will investigate the historical development, present crises, and possible futures of a warming world. Authors might include: Jesmyn Ward, Ben Lerner, Kathy Jetnil-Kijiner, Craig Santos Perez, and Amitav Ghosh.