Current Bloggers-in-Residence
Lauren Davila is a writer currently pursuing her MA in English at Claremont Graduate University. She holds an MFA in Fiction Writing from George Mason University and dual BAs in English and Creative Writing from Pepperdine University. After completing her studies, she plans to teach English at the collegiate level while publishing poetry and fiction. Her writing has appeared in Granada Magazine, The Paragon Journal, Peach Velvet Mag, In Parentheses, and Poets Reading the News. She lives in Claremont, where you can find her writing in any of the local coffee shops.
Lilly Fisher is currently a master’s student in applied gender studies at CGU with a concentration in American studies. She earned her BA in philosophy and English from Tufts University and recently moved to California from Brooklyn. Her research focuses on the overlapping realms of critical theory, art, activism, and in the creation of new political possibilities through movement between these fields. When she’s not reading and writing, Lilly loves to sing karaoke, run long distances, and hang out with her cat.
Past Bloggers-in-Residence
Jordan Wheatley is a second-year master’s student in the English Department at CGU. Her research focuses on the global socioeconomic effects of American capitalism and neoliberalism and how they are presented in literary works from Latin America and the United States. She is also interested in post-World War II American literature and the differing critiques of capitalism within an emergent consumerist economy. She works as a managing editor for Women’s Studies: An Interdisciplinary Journal and is currently working on a book project on Sylvia Plath with Professor Wendy Martin. Jordan is an assistant editor for Foothill Poetry Journal, and the current Kingsley and Kate Tufts poetry blogger-in-residence at CGU.
Stacey Park is a PhD student in English at CGU and a writer. Her research interests include contemporary poetry/poetics, digital humanities, and new criticism. Her writing can be read in the Baltimore Review, Curator Magazine, Portland Review, and elsewhere. She holds an MA in English Literature from the University of Toronto, an MFA from California State University, Long Beach, and a BA in English with Honors from Biola University.
Cassady O’Reilly-Hahn (Summer 2019) is an MA student in English with a concentration in Media Studies. The self-identified Dantisti graduated Cum Laude from Cal Poly Pomona in 2017 with a BA in English. Cassady joined Foothill Poetry Journal as an Assistant Editor in 2018. His primary research interests are the Divine Comedy, Fantasy literature, and poetry, especially as they pertain to the everyday life. When he is not sailing the tides of literature, Cassady spends his time working on his own creative writing. He also moonlights as a professional napper, when time permits (and it often does).
Jamey Keeton (Spring 2019, Fall 2018) is an MA student in Cultural Studies and Media Studies at CGU. He holds a BA with Distinction from San Diego State University in Humanities with a minor in Religious Studies. Aside from serving as a Research Studio Fellow for DH@CC, Jamey is an Associate Editor with Foothill: a journal of poetry. His primary academic interests include comics studies, critical theory, media studies, visual studies, popular culture, film theory and criticism, and aesthetics. Jamey is a USMC veteran.
Annamae Sax (Spring 2019, Fall 2018) is a MA student in Applied Women’s Studies with a concentration in Cultural Studies at CGU. She graduated Cum Laude from the University of Arizona in the spring of 2018 and holds a dual BA in Creative Writing with a focus in Poetry and Gender and Women’s Studies with a focus in Queer, Trans, and Sexuality Studies. Her academic focus is on outreach, healing, and transformative justice for LGBTQIA+ survivors of sexual assault, as well as prison abolition and the intersection of mental health and addiction. Annamae loves to travel, having lived in both Italy and Ireland as an undergraduate, as well as camping, hiking, and getting tattooed. Any time spent with her dog Loaf is time well spent.
Kelly Eisenbrand (Spring/Summer 2018, Fall 2017) is a MA student in CGU’s English program. They love debate, comic books, and Dan Carlin’s Hardcore History. Kelly’s worst habit is probably book-hoarding, which is kept in check only by their two pet rabbits–Bruce Wayne and Bane–who eat books. An avid fiction, non-fiction, and poetry writer and reader, Kelly adores Ann Carson and hopes to one day capture a tenth of her glory. The CGU Writing Center is Kelly’s second home; they work as a writing consultant, Director Mark Pedretti’s research assistant, and occasional International Students Program instructor. They are also an expert ACT/SAT tutor and hope that fact won’t be held against them.
Emily Schuck (Spring 2018, Fall/Spring 2017) is a PhD student in English at Claremont Graduate University, focusing on modernism. She serves as an editor-in-chief for CGU’s poetry journal, Foothill: a journal of poetry, and teaches at University of La Verne.
Ashley Call (Spring/Summer 2017, Fall 2016) is a MA student in Claremont Graduate University’s literature program, where she is an ardent lover of modernist poetry and fiction. Among her favorite modernist poets are Mina Loy, T. S. Eliot, H.D., and William Carlos Williams. As a student of literature and a lover of language in all its forms, Ashley spends much of her free time writing her own poetry and essays, practicing the few languages she speaks, and attending readings of all sorts. When she’s not engaged in literary pursuits, she’s either scouting out the best taco trucks in LA, planning her next overseas excursion, or fearlessly singing Fleetwood Mac at any (and every) karaoke bar.
Michael Kemp (Spring 2017) is currently in his last semester at CGU in the Philosophy M.A. program. He is also currently working as a Writing Consultant for the CGU Writing Center. If you ask him what his favorite work of poetry is he will probably reply by claiming it depends what you mean by “poetry.” If song lyrics count, then he has too many favorite poets to name. But maybe he is just biased because he received his Bachelor’s in music. Philosophy aside—though perhaps not a very erudite selection—his favorite poet would have to be Edgar Allan Poe. Michael has eclectic interests and is a firm believer that members of all disciplines should routinely ask themselves what their role is in respect to the outside world. When he’s not at school, work, or lost in his head, you can find him playing guitar in his “math rock power-duo” (better if you don’t ask, but he’ll gladly talk about it if you do) or on the badminton court.
Brock Rustin (Fall 2016, Spring 2016) recently completed his MA in English and is currently a third year PhD candidate at Claremont Graduate University. As an educator, professional student, and amateur creator, he is intrigued by all forms of poetic expression. When not studying for qualifying exams, acting as a Writing Consultant for CGU’s Writing Center, or blogging about Tufts related issues, Brock spends his time cultivating stubborn cacti, playing homespun piano, expanding his cultural palate through adventurous dining, and exploring the Los Angeles area’s diverse artistic performance scene.
Rachel Morrison (Spring 2016) teaches writing and English at the University of La Verne and Chaffey College. A CGU alumna (PhD, English, 2015) she was one of the founding members of CGU’s foothill: a journal of poetry and has been involved in the school’s poetry scene for over five years. When not stalking book fairs and poetry readings, she can usually be found in one of Claremont’s coffee shops or strolling around the City of Trees and PhDs with her dog, Bean.