Curriculum Vitae

John Minczeski

651 738-9136
lyublinz-@msn.com

EDUCATION

M.F.A. Poetry, Warren Wilson College, Swannanoa, North Carolina. 1990.
B.A. University of Minnesota, 1973. Interdepartmental Major (Italian, Art History, English, Creative Writing, Humanities.)

TEACHING EXPERIENCE

Graduate and Undergraduate:

2005—Creative Writing Department, University of Minnesota. Reading for Writers, Poetry (Engw 5310), Spring Semester. Thesis advisor for MFA students. Screened poetry applicants to the MFA program.

2004—Creative Writing Department, University of Minnesota, Morality and Poetry, a seminar and workshop(EngW 5130), Fall Semester.

2003—Creative Writing Department, University of Minnesota. Reading for Writers, Poetry (Engw 5310), Spring Semester.

2000—St. Cloud State University, St. Cloud, Minnesota, Beginning Poetry (Eng. 343) and Advanced Poetry (Eng. 443 and 543), Fall Semester.

2000—Macalester College, St. Paul, Minnesota, Introduction to Creative Writing (Eng. 12), Spring and Fall Semesters.

1993-- University of St. Thomas, St. Paul, Minnesota. English 301-01, Creative Writing, Spring Semester.

1990-1991-Hamline University, St. Paul, Minnesota. 100-level composition courses. Ways of Reading and Writing, and Fiction and the Writer.

1990-1993—Guest faculty, Mankato State University, Removal and Social Ritual, a class I co-taught (as writer-in-residence) with Sociology Professors Tom Schmidt and Steve Buechler in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area along the Canadian Border.

1990--Warren Wilson College, MFA Program for Writers, winter residency. Pacing in Contemporary Poetry. A close examination of how dramatic material is released through rhythm, narrative, syntax and tone in the works of Philip Levine, Cesare Pavese, Louise Gluck, Sylvia Plath, C.K. Williams, and Stephen Dobyns.

1987-1990—Hamline University, Department of Graduate Studies and Continuing Education: Poetry classes for elementary and high-school teachers.

1985--Hamline University. Poetry class for college credit to high school seniors at Breck School in Minneapolis.

Other

2002-’06—Proposed and attained funding for teaching a multi-disciplinary class to the first graders at Longfellow School. The project, covering a total of eight weeks (one week per month over the course of the school year) involved poetry and music (taught by composer Carei Thomas and myself). The project culminated with a series of public performances by the children at Merriam Park Community Center (for the senior citizen program) and at Andy’s Restaurant in St. Paul. Funding was provided by SASE, The Write Place, Young Audiences, and St. Paul Public Schools.

2000—Present—Roster artist for Young Audiences, a residency booking agency.

1998-99—Worked with education staff at SASE, The Write Place to develop and implement performance packages for the creative writing elective for high school students. These packages are intended to help satisfy the new graduation standards for Minnesota schools.

1996--I proposed and received funding for an interdisciplinary arts project involving five St. Paul Schools. Writers, Visual Artists, Dancers and Composers worked closely with teachers to develop arts activities using the Saint Paul Cultural Garden as a model. The program, which I coordinated (with administrative oversight by the East Side Arts Council and Michael Garcia and Associates), culminated with a group performance at the Cultural Garden in May, 1996. Based on what we developed, I wrote a guide showing 1) how teachers and artists can work together, and 2) how the process used to create the Cultural Garden can serve as a model for arts activities in schools.

1995-’97--The Breakfast Club: Poetry classes for Saturday School students at Henry High School in North Minneapolis. Students serving Saturday detention were offered the opportunity to study and write poetry along with other students and community members rather than sit in detention class. The program proved so successful it received funding for the 1996-’97 school year, and student poems were printed in the school literary magazine, in the Camden community monthly newspaper, and in other publications such as the Minnesota Law Review.

1996-present—Roster Artist for Minnesota State Arts Board Arts in Education Residency Programs.

1994--St. Paul Science Museum Magnet School and Eizenminger Program. Collaborated with science museum staff and artist Alvin Carter in producing a mural with poetry text for the school’s peace garden. The Eizenminger program is designed for level 5 EBD students.

1994--Arts High School. Taught poetry to senior language arts students during fall quarter.

1994--Caught Between Cultures. Worked with a team of writers including Diego Vazquez and Gita Karr in teaching writing to teenage Asian immigrants. The program was designed to examine cultural identity and differences. Target cultures were Hmong, Lao, Vietnamese and Indian.

1990-1994—Poetry workshops at The Loft (a writing and literature center in the Twin Cities). Class offerings include Beginning Poetry, Poetry from the First Person, and Structure, Sense and Sensibility in Poetry.

1987-2000—Twin City Institute for Talented Youth, Macalester College, St. Paul, MN. Intensive creative writing workshops in poetry and prose for junior high and high school students.

1975-Present—Minnesota Writers-in-the-Schools. Administered by Community Programs in the Arts and Sciences (COMPAS), St. Paul. 1-week to 2-week residencies in schools, grades K-12, in Minnesota and North Dakota.

1987-1989--Dialogue Project. Administered by COMPAS, Dialogue was a series of 6-week residency programs funded by the Rockefeller Foundation to help teachers develop and teach writing to their students. Involved classroom time and individual counseling. The funding for this program expired in 1989.

1984--Faculty, Split Rock Arts Program, University of Minnesota: “Poetry from Your Own Backyard.”

1984--Guest writer at the St. Cloud Summer Writers Workshop, St. Cloud State University.

1983-1987, 1994-present--Minnesota State Arts Board Arts in Education Program roster artist. 1-3 week writing residencies, grades K-12.

1979-‘82--COMPAS Senior Arts Program. A weekly poetry workshop for Senior Citizens at the Jewish Community Center in St. Paul.

1973-present--Adult poetry workshops at The Loft.

PUBLICATIONS

Books:
(as author)

A Letter to Serafin, (Poetry), University of Akron Press, Akron, Ohio. 2009.

Grass Elegy, (Poem sequence, chapbook), Red Dragonfly Press, Red Wing, MN, 2007.

November, (Poetry, chapbook), Finishing Line Press, Lexington, KY, 2007.

Circle Routes, (Poetry), University of Akron Press, Akron, Ohio, 2001. Winner of the 2000 Akron Poetry Prize, chosen by Mary Oliver.

The Saint Paul Cultural Garden Residency Program: A History and a Guide for Teacher/Artist Collaboration, (Chapbook, essay) East Side Arts Council, St. Paul, 1997.

Gravity, (Poetry) Texas Tech University Press, Lubbock, Texas, 1991.

The Reconstruction of Light, (Poetry) New Rivers Press, St. Paul, 1981. An inaugural volume in the Minnesota Voices Project.

The Spiders, (Poetry) New Rivers Press, 1979. A finalist in the 1980 Elliston Book Awards from the University of Cincinnati.

(as editor)

Sing to the Dust, A Statewide Anthology of Children’s Writing, COMPAS, St. Paul, 2004.

Concert at Chopin’s House: A Collection of Polish-American Writing, New Rivers Press, St. Paul, Minnesota, 1988.

The Midnight Butterfly Sings, A Collection of Children’s Writing, COMPAS, St. Paul, 1988.

Literary Journals and Anthologies (1999-present):

Barn Owl Review, Akron, Ohio, “The Dark City,” (poem) forthcoming

St. Paul Almanac, St. Paul, Minnesota, “Fog,” (poem) 2011

Perfect Dragonfly, (A retrospective anthology published by Red Dragonfly Press) Red Wing, Minnesota, “Grass Elegy,” (poem) 2011

Cerise Press (online), “January” (poem) forthcoming

Barn Owl Review, Akron, Ohio, “Mr. Jones,” (poem) 2011

Connecticut River Review, West Hartford, Connecticut, “Anaesthetic,” (poem) 2010

Connecticut River Review, West Hartford, Connecticut, “Nuns in the Dream” (poem) 2010

X-Peri, W. Somerville, Massachusetts, “My Father’s Face,” (poem) forthcoming

X-Peri, W. Somerville, Massachusetts, “Sonnet—Spoiled Milk of the Sky” (poem) forthcoming

X-Peri, W. Somerville, Massachusetts, “We Called My Grandfather Bop” (poem) forthcoming

Litteraria Pragensia Books, Prague, Czech Republic, “Grandfather Janósz and the Polish Graves of New Prague” (poem) forthcoming

Barn Owl Review, Akron, Ohio, “Slug,” (poem) 2010

War, Literature and the Arts, Colorado Springs, Colorado, “The Camps,” (poem sequence) 2010

Istanbul Literary Review, “Escape from Zero,” (poem) 2010

Istanbul Literary Review, “Gravitational,” (poem) 2010

Istanbul Literary Review, “Holy Night,” (poem) 2010

Istanbul Literary Review, “In Memory of Snow,” (poem) 2010

Istanbul Literary Review, “Rain,” (poem) 2010

PoetryMagazine.com, “November,” (poem) October, 2009

PoetryMagazine.com, “Two White Bowls,” (poem) October, 2009

PoetryMagazine.com, “On Not Smiling,” (poem) October, 2009

PoetryMagazine.com, “elegy: the economies of winter,” (poem) October, 2009

PoetryMagazine.com, “Salt,” (poem) October, 2009

Verse Daily, “A Letter to Serafin,” (poem) featured on 8/23/09.

Big City Lit (bigcitylit.com), “A Life of Zero,” (poem) 2009

Big City Lit (bigcitylit.com), “This Zero,” (poem) 2009

Naugatuck Review, Westfield, Massachusetts, “Dialogue on Bleeker,” (poem) 2009

Connecticut River Review, West Hartford, Connecticut, “Farm, 1962,” (poem) 2009

Connecticut River Review, West Hartford, Connecticut, “Michelangelo: Leda and Zeus,” (poem) 2009

Connecticut River Review, West Hartford, Connecticut, “October Primrose,” (poem) 2009

Cerise Press (online), “On Not Smiling,” (poem) 2009

Cerise Press (online), “Auto Dialogue,” (poem) 2009

Cerise Press (online), “Backyard Dialogue,” (poem) 2009

Krytia (kritia.com), “A Letter to Serafin,” (poem) 2009

Krytia (kritia.com), “My Name,” (poem) 2009

Umbrella.com, “Madonna With the Outline of a Breast,” (poem) 2008

Umbrella.com, “The Last Pietà,” (poem) 2008

American Poetry Journal, Aptos, California, “Untitled Poem with Peonies,” (poem) 2008

Minnesota Historical Society Press/Borealis Books, St. Paul, MN, Where One Voice Ends Another Begins: 150 Years of Minnesota Poetry: “Excelsior Amusement Park, 1932,” (poem) 2007

Minnesota Historical Society Press/Borealis Books, St. Paul, MN, Where One Voice Ends Another Begins: 150 Years of Minnesota Poetry: “Note to Trish from the Flamingo Hotel,” (poem) 2007

Minnesota Historical Society Press/Borealis Books, St. Paul, MN, Where One Voice Ends Another Begins: 150 Years of Minnesota Poetry: “Thaw,” (poem) 2007

Nowa Okolica Poetow, Rzeszów, Poland, “Grandfather Janósz and the Polish Graves of New Prague,” (poem) 2007, in Polish translation

Nowa Okolica Poetow, Rzeszów, Poland, “Sunrise/Spoleto, 1967,” (poem) 2007 , in Polish translation

Nowa Okolica Poetow, Rzeszów, Poland, “Columbines,” (poem) 2007, in Polish translation

Poetry Midwest (http://www.poetrymidwest.org), Prairie Village, KS: “The Crows of Kraków” (poem) 2006.

Fourth River, Pittsburgh, PA, “A Letter to Serafin Minczewski,” (poem) 2006.

Cervená Barva Press, West Somerville, MA (postcard series): “Annunciation, Leonardo,” (poem) 2005.

The Marlboro Review, Marlboro, Vermont: “Resort Town,” (poem) 2005.

Poetry East, Chicago, Illinois: “On Kneeling,” (poem) 2005.

Poetry East, Chicago, Illinois: “Listening to Robert Johnson’s Blues,” (poem) 2005 .

Rattapallax, New York, NY: “Japanese Tree Lilac #10” (poem) 2005.

Mid-American Review, Bowling Green, Ohio: “2 White Bowls” (poem) 2004.

Crab Orchard Review, Carbondale, IL: “Thieves of Warsaw” (poem, 2004).

Poetry Midwest (http://www.poetrymidwest.org), Prairie Village, KS: “Planting,” (poem) 2004.

Poetry Midwest (http://www.poetrymidwest.org), Prairie Village, KS: “Rocks,” (poem) 2004.

DMQ Review, (http://www.disquietingmuses.com/may04/index2.html): “Fear,” (poem, 2004).

Meridian #10, Charlottesville, VA: “Japanese Tree Lilac on Solstice #4, (poem) 2003.

Notre Dame Review #15, South Bend, IN: “Shadblow,” (poem) 2003.

Perfect in Their Art: Poems on Boxing from Homer to Ali. (Southern Illinois University Press). “Irises at Ringside,” (poem). 2003.

Great River Review, Winona, MN: “Jewish Cemetery, Rymanów” (poem) 2003.

Great River Review, Winona, MN: “Japanese Tree Lilac #3,” (poem) 2003.

Sojourn, Richardson, TX: “Japanese Tree Lilac #1,” (poem) 2003.

Sojourn, Richardson, TX: “One Version,” (poem) 2003.

Sojourn, Richardson, TX: “In a Spoleto Hotel,” (poem) 2003.

Mr. Cogito (http://mrcogito@freeservers.com). “November,” (poem) 2002.

Mr. Cogito (http://mrcogito@freeservers.com). “Wild Rose,” (poem) 2002.

Mr. Cogito (http://mrcogito@freeservers.com). “I Thought My Ancestors Were Swimming,” (poem) 2002.

Great River Review, 25^th Anniversary Retrospective, Winona, MN: “Excelsior Amusement Park, 1932” (poem) 2002.

An Eye for an Eye Makes the Whole World Blind: Poets on 9/11, “The News of November 1, 2001,” (poem). (Regent Press, Oakland, CA), 2002.

Atlanta Review, Atlanta, GA: “Chalk” (poem) “Third Grand Prize Winner” in Atlanta Review’s International Poetry Competition. 2001.

Quarterly West, Salt Lake City, UT: “On Receiving a Letter From My Great-Grandfather, Serafin Minczewski” (poem) 2001.

Mid-American Review, Bowling Green, Ohio: “Liberation” (poem) 2001.

Mid-American Review, Bowling Green, Ohio: “Bats,” (poem) 2001.

Heliotrope, Shady, NY: “On Smelling” (poem) 2001.

Phantasmagoria, White Bear Lake, MN: “Mayfly Spinners,” (poem) 2001.

Phantasmagoria, White Bear Lake, MN: “Tuesday,” (poem) 2001.

Phantasmagoria, White Bear Lake, MN: “Late 20^th Century Artifacts,” (poem) 2001.

Phantasmagoria, White Bear Lake, MN: “The Music of Warsaw,” (poem) 2001.

Phantasmagoria, “A Word for Me” (poem) 2001.

Great River Review, Red Wing, Minnesota: “Excelsior Amusement Park, 1932 (poem) 2001.

Great River Review, Red Wing, Minnesota: “Monet Paints His Wife’s Portrait on Her Death Bed,” (poem) 2001.

Great River Review, Red Wing, Minnesota “Sunday Morning at the Laundromat” (poem) 2001.

Blink An Anthology of Short-Shorts, “Tut,” short story. (Spout Press, St. Paul, MN), 2001.

Agni, Boston, MA: “Trains that Run on Time” (Poem) 2000.

Marlboro Review, Marlboro, VT: “Caterpillars at Knossos,” (poem) 2000.

Marlboro Review, Marlboro, VT: “Mayflies” (poem) 2000.

The Isle Review, (islereview.com--defunct): “April Snow, Nisswa” (poems) 2000.

The Isle Review, (islereview.com--defunct): “Lublin, It is Raining,” (poems) 2000.

Lullwater Review, Atlanta, GA: “The Consolation,” (poem) Winner of the 2000 Lullwater Poetry Prize. 2000.

Minnesota Monthly, Minneapolis, MN: “Tomatoes at Equinox,” (Poem) 2000.

Meridian, Charlottesville, VA: “Pencils in the Concentration Camp,” (poem) 1999.

Free Lunch, Laguna Niguel, CA, “Work,” (poem) 1999.

Pleiades, Warrensburg, MO: “Iris,” (poem) 1999.

The Midwest Quarterly, Pittsburg, KS: “Bronislaw and the Devil,” (poem) 1999.

AWARDS

2009—The Lena-MilesWever Todd Poetry Series: Pleiades Press. Finalist with my manuscript, The Night Dog Variations.
2008—The Lena-MilesWever Todd Poetry Series: Pleiades Press. Semi-finalist with my manuscript, The Night Dog Variations.
2006—The Nimrod/Hardman Awards: The Pablo Neruda Prize for Poetry. Semi-finalist.
2006—The Snowbound Chapbook Competition, Tupelo Press with my manuscript, Magdalene on the Bus. Finalist.
2006—The Journal Award, The Ohio State University Press, with my manuscript, The Last Pietà. Finalist.
2005—The Dorset Prize, Tupelo Press, with my manuscript, The Last Pietà. Finalist.
2004—Named the Edelstein-Keller Distinguished Fellow, University of Minnesota, spring semester, 2005.
2004—Named an Edelstein-Keller Fellow, University of Minnesota, fall semester, 2004.
2003—The National Poetry Series with my manuscript, The Last Pietà. Finalist.
2003—Nominated for a Pushcart Prize (Best of the Small Presses) by Eleanor Wilner, a contributing editor for Pushcart Press.
2002 Jerome Travel and Study Grant for travel and research in Italy for October, 2002.
2001 The Poetry 2001 International Poetry Competition awarded by The Atlanta Review. Third Grand Prize.
2000 Akron Poetry Prize, University of Akron Press, Akron, Ohio, for my manuscript, Circle Routes, selected by Mary Oliver. First Place.
2000 Lullwater Prize for Poetry, awarded by the Lullwater Review, Emory University, Atlanta. First Place.
1999 The Saint Paul Companies LIN (Leadership Initiatives in Neighborhoods) Grant. Allowing me to take a sabbatical, travel, and investigate starting an arts program in a low-income high rise apartment building in my neighborhood, and work on a festival involving collaborations between poets and composers.
1996 Jerome Foundation Travel and Study Grant. For travel to Swannanoa, NC, for my graduate school alumni conference.
1992 Minnesota State Arts Board Sudden Opportunity Grant. Travel and expenses to give a reading in Cambridge, MA.
1990 Don Chambers Memorial Poetry Contest for Poetry of Political and Social Protest (awarded by Mr. Cogito Press), First Prize.
1990 Associated Writing Programs Award Series: Finalist for my poetry manuscript, “Sparrow Grass.”
1988 Loft Mentor Series winner in poetry.
1988 Mayors’ Public Art Awards for the anthology, Concert at Chopin’s House.
1986 Loft/McKnight Award for Creative Prose.
1984 National Endowment for the Arts Creative Writing Fellowship.
1981 Bush Foundation Fellowship for Individual Artists.
1979 MSAB (Minnesota State Arts Board) Works-in-Progress Grant.
1976 MSAB Fellowship in Creative Writing.

OTHER

2003-06—Member of The Loft Board of Directors.
2003—Lectured on major post-war Polish poets for both SASE, The Write Place and the Plymouth Church “Poetry of Witness Series,” November.
2002—Invited by The Anderson Center to an artist residency in May.
2001—Invited by The Anderson Center to an artist residency in May.
2001—Coordinator, with composer Carei Thomas, of the Twin Cities Poetry Music Innovation.
2000—Invited by the Corporation of Yaddo to an artist residency in March.
2000—Participant in Minnesota 2000 Journal Project.
1996—1999: Curator of Mill City Reading Series. A monthly reading series sponsored by S.A.S.E. The Right Place and funded by the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council.
1996—2004: President of the Board of Minnesota Literature.
1995--My story, “Bassoons” was read by Eric Friesen for his dinner hour program on Minnesota Public Radio.
1995--I was invited to participate in a panel on Polish/American writers at the annual meeting of the Polish American Historical Association, held concurrently with the American Historical Association at the Palmer House in Chicago. During my portion of the panel I presented the first part of my critical essay on the writings of Natalie Kusz.
1994-1996: S.A.S.E., The Write Place, Board of Directors. Secretary of the Board and member of the Executive Committee.
1993--St. Paul Culture Garden. A collaborative effort to design a public park incorporating poetry and sculpture. Participated with poets David Mura, Roberta Hill Whitman, Sandra Benitez, Soyini Guyten, Xeng Su Yang, and sculptor Cliff Garten in overall design and creation of text for project which was funded by the St. Paul Foundation and donated to the City of St. Paul, November 1, 1993.
1992-1995--Curator of “The Loft at Loring” and “The Loft at Large” reading series, Minneapolis.
1991--Co-scripted videos, with novelist Davida Adedjouma, for young adults on the themes of sexuality and racism for Augsburg Fortress Press, Minneapolis.
1989-2005—Member of the Board of Minnesota Literature.
1989-91--Member of the Board of New Rivers Press.
1986-1989--Administrative Assistant, New Rivers Press, Minneapolis. Grant research and grant writing for one of the oldest literary presses in the country. My work included developing long-range marketing and distribution plans. As a result of this work, earned income nearly doubled the first year and eventually climbed from $12,000 to over $40,000 per year.
1980--Garrison Keillor read my story, “Sgt. Pepper Summer,” on A Prairie Home Companion as a memorial for John Lennon in December.
1979-‘84--Owner and operator of Peregrine Cold Type, a typesetting business whose main clientele was literary small press publishers. I sold the business to employees, and it continues to operate as Peregrine Publications.
1978-‘80--Coordinator for Minnesota Poetry Outloud. A group of poets and musicians who toured throughout Minnesota small towns with performances of music and poetry. The organization operated with funds provided from the Minnesota State Arts Board.
1976-Present—MotherChild/PoetryJazz, a group I founded with musician and composer Carei Thomas, continues to perform. Over the years we have given numerous performances of poetry and music, and have included such musicians as Anthony Cox, Jimmy Smith, Gary Schulte, and poets Kate Green, Candace Clayton, Roy McBride, Meridel LeSueur, Alvaro Cardona-Hine, etc. In more recent years we have appeared mainly as a duet.
1976-‘78--President of the board of directors for The Loft. Also chaired the Events and Class Committees.