Two students in the Maslow Family Graduate Program in Creative Writing at Wilkes University were awarded scholarships. The scholarship awards were announced during the creative writing program’s June residency, which was held virtually.
The two students receiving scholarships are:
Wayne Benson of Easton Pa. was awarded the Jennifer Diskin Memorial Scholarship. Benson, who is pursuing the Master of Fine Arts degree, recently completed his creative thesis, a poetry collection titled “Archive For An Unnamed Woman.” His faculty mentor in the program is poet Philip Brady.
Created in her memory by her parents, Ed and Anita Diskin, family and friends, this annual scholarship is awarded to a full-time student enrolled in the creative writing program, with a strong interest in poetry. Jennifer Diskin was a gifted writer and poet who graduated with the Master of Arts degree in creative writing in 2006. During her readings, she revealed a piece of her soul with her audience and the world.
Monique Franz of Rochester, N.Y., was awarded the Norris Church Mailer Scholarship Franz, who is pursuing the Master of Fine Arts degree, completed her creative thesis in fiction, a novel titled “Sistas in Hong Kong.” Franz’s faculty mentor in the creative writing program is novelist Taylor Polites.
The scholarship was established in 2004 by the late Pulitzer Prize-winning author Norman Mailer, husband of the novelist Norris Church Mailer, other friends, and a gift from the estate of the late Gordon Smith. It is awarded annually to a graduate student in the creative writing program who has both artistic promise and financial need. Selection is made by a faculty committee appointed by the director of the creative writing program.
About the Maslow Family Graduate Program in Creative Writing
The mission of the Maslow Family Graduate Program in Creative Writing is to educate students in the craft, life, and business practices of seven areas of study — fiction, poetry, screenwriting, playwriting, creative nonfiction, publishing and making documentary films — through a commitment to excellent mentorships, publishing opportunities, and industry-specific internships. The program offers a nationally recognized and widely reputed graduate creative writing program where students and faculty find the writing support, community, and market opportunities to become lifelong, productive, professional writers in all fields.
The Graduate Creative Writing program is offered in two formats. In the low-residency format, students learn online during the project semester and usually attend two eight-day in-person residencies each January and June. For the weekender program, students learn online and attend four face-to-face weekend class sessions each term. The weekender program also is being conducted entirely online at this time.
