MARCH 9 THEME: REBIRTH/NEW BEGINNINGS
Ibaa Ismail: Arabic
Ibaa Ismail published her first collection of poems in Arabic Horses of Light and Alienation”, then “Songs of the Soul” and “The Light of My Nation”, a collection of poems for children, then “Inflammations of An Emigrant”. Her latest collection is “The Awakening of Fire and Jasmine”. Ibaa’s poems were included in a number of anthologies, such as The Anthology of Arab American Poetry. She participated in many evening literary performances and symposiums sponsored by different American and Arab American cultural organizations.
Jamile Trueba Lawand: Spanish Andalusian Poetry in English Translation
Jamile Trueba Lawand teaches Spanish at the University of Michigan-Flint, where she also directs the “Middle Eastern” Studies Program. Born in Brazil, she was raised both in Michigan and Spain (in Seville, the capital of Andalusia), and has travelled to several European destinations. Her interests include understanding cultural identity in the Spanish-speaking world, and the study of the Arabo-Islamic presence (711-1492) in Spain: Al-Andalus.
Also Presenting: Mohamed Daassa, Jennifer Amble & Abrar Jondy

MARCH 23 THEME: LOVE
Joseph Tyler: Spanish
Joseph Tyler was born in Mexico and grew up in San Diego, California. His poetry has appeared in newspapers in Mexico and Argentina, and in journals such as Discurso Literario and Maiz: Xicano Notebooks. Dr. Tyler read translations of poems and stories by Borges on which the author made comments. He is currently teaching Spanish at UM-Flint.
He lives in Flint and Horton, Michigan.
Teddy Robertson: Polish
Theodosia (Teddy) Robertson lived and worked in Poland for over four years during the 1970s, the last decade of Communist rule. Her Ph.D. is in Slavic Languages and Literatures, specializing in Polish literature. She has published on Polish-Jewish writer Bruno Schulz and produced three book-length translations from Polish to English as well as several articles. Teddy lives in Flint and has taught in the UM-Flint Department of History since 1986.

APRIL 13 THEME: FAITH
Jan Worth: English
Jan Worth-Nelson is a poet, essayist and novelist whose works have appeared in Christian Science Monitor, the Los Angeles Times, and many literary magazines. Her novel, Night Blind, was a top ten finalist in literary fiction in the ForeWord Magazine competition of 2006. She writes a monthly column, Village Life, for East Village Magazine. She teaches writing at the UM-Flint and is a longtime resident of Flint who now also spends about a third of each year in Los Angeles.
Grayce Scholt: English
Retired MCC English Professor Grayce Scholt, author of Bang! Go All the Porch Swings. Grayce Scholt was born in Oak Harbor, a small town in Northwestern Ohio -- its people and places the impetus of many of her poems. She taught in the MCC English Department from 1955 until her retirement in 1990. She lives in Flint’s East Village.

Poetry Under the Stars is brought to you in partnership by Universirty of Michigan-Flint Department of Foreign Languages & Literatures and Sloan*Longway.
This series is graciously underwritten by Mr. and Mrs. Dean Yeotis.
This program has been generously supported by Hollywood Awards, Jamile Trueba Lawand (on behalf of the “Middle Eastern” Studies Program), Yolanda & Rafael Mojica and Juan E. Mestas.

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