Description

This writing workshop is for scholars of religion and theology who have devoted at least fifteen to twenty years to teaching in higher education. We invite those who are ready to share their knowledge and personal experience in a more creative way with a wider audience. Participants will be encouraged to explore the love, purpose, complexity, and legacy of their journey as educators. Through a combination of plenary sessions, small-group workshops, guided writing exercises, and individual feedback, participants will cultivate a writing practice that honors both craft and reflection in a space that will allow them to examine their own stories through prose, verse and other literary forms. Together, we will explore memory, voice, scene, narrative structure, and revision while building a supportive community of educators committed to preserving the lived experience of teaching. By the end of the week, participants will have begun transforming years of accumulated wisdom into creative work that speaks not only to colleagues, but also to broader audiences interested in education, vocation, and the human experience.

Workshop Goals

• To create a collaborative community of experienced educators committed to reflecting on the meaning and legacy of teaching.
• To explore creative literary forms and genres as vehicles for examining a life in higher education.
• To develop strategies for writing with honesty, clarity, imagination, and emotional depth.
• To cultivate sustainable reflective writing practices that honor the joys, challenges, and complexities of an academic career.
• To write, workshop, and receive constructive feedback within a supportive cohort of peers who share a long commitment to teaching and learning.

Eligibility

• Fifteen or more years of teaching experience in higher education (college, university, or seminary), with twenty or more years especially encouraged.
• Full-time or continuing faculty, including tenured, tenure-track, teaching, clinical, or other long-term academic appointments.
• Teaching at an accredited college, university, or seminary in the United States, Puerto Rico, or Canada.
• A demonstrated interest in exploring the experiences of teaching and academic life through creative writing.
• A commitment to participate fully in the workshop, including 100% attendance in all sessions.
• No prior publication in creative genres is required; participants need only a willingness to write, reflect, and engage with the work of others.

Application Materials

Application Contact Information form

Cover letter

An introductory letter (300–325 words) describing your career as an educator, why this is the right moment to reflect creatively on your teaching life, and what you hope to explore or discover through this workshop.

Academic CV (4-page limit)

Letter of Institutional Support 

A letter from your Department Chair, Academic Dean, Provost, Vice President, or President indicating support for your full participation in the program to be uploaded by you into the portal.