The College of Arts and Sciences hosted its third annual Graduate Student Writing Retreat on September 13-17 at Cedar Point Biological Station in Ogallala, Nebraska. Twenty-two students from chemistry, mathematics, biological sciences, English, modern languages and literatures, psychology, sociology, and political science joined faculty facilitators Joy Castro (English and ethnic studies), Kelsy Burke (sociology and women’s and gender studies), and Will Thomas (history) for four days in the remote Nebraska Sandhills. Students made significant progress on their own major writing projects and supported one another in small groups intended as a ‘community of writers’ for each student.
"Everyone was inspired, energized, and refreshed," Thomas, the college's Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Education, said.
Writer-in-Residence Carson Vaughan (’10) met with students informally throughout the retreat and shared his experiences as a freelance writer, journalist, and editor in a “fireside chat” discussion. Vaughan is currently writing a travelogue of the Sandhills, a nonfiction book about the region as the largest and ‘last’ grassland in the world, under contract with W. W. Norton & Co.
Thomas said the group enjoyed the informal hikes and paddles, as well as rousing games of ping pong and UNO, and are very thankful for the generosity and support of the great staff at Cedar Point.
