English Funded Activities

FUNDED ACTIVITIES

Here are opportunities that the English Department (sometimes with other offices and organizations) offers DC students every year. Students from a wide range of majors receive support for these cultural, travel, conference, and writing events.

Visit the Events & News page for photo albums and news of the experiences of students at the funded activities listed below.

SwampFire Retreat for Writers and Artists
At Professor Emeritus Steve Smith's
home on Lime Lake, in northeast Indiana

The yearly invitational English Department and Arts & Humanities summer retreat is hosted by Dawn Comer and Steve Smith at his lakeside home. Student writers and professional writers and artists gather for a weekend of work sessions among the trees and informal critique around an evening campfire.
More . . . photos at the SwampFire Retreat website

Animarathon Conference
Bowling Green State U, Bowling Green OH

This spring conference is a favorite of students interested
in anime film, graphic novels, and other visual and media
formats that incorporate literary themes. English majors
and students involved in visual and media arts are
encouraged to propose conference panels.
Conference information at www.bgsu.edu

More . . . photos of a recent Amimarathon conference

Shakespeare Festival
Stratford, Ontario

Every fall, DC students travel with professors to see a play
at the famous international Shakespeare Festival. The
College and students share expenses for the trip, which
takes us to a foreign country without leaving the continent.
In 2012, the trip included a stunning performance of that classic War of the Sexes between Beatrice and Benedick, Much Ado About Nothing.
Festival information at http://www.stratfordfestival.ca

More . . . photos of a recent trip

Society for the Study of Midwestern Literature Conference
Michigan State University, Lansing MI

Students who have produced polished fiction, creative
nonfiction, poetry, or literary criticism are strongly
encouraged to propose readings for this professional
conference. Both SSML and the DC English department
provide funding for students whose work is accepted for
presentation.
Conference information at http://www.ssml.org

More . . . photos of a recent conference

For more information on funded activities, contact MC Harper or Todd Comer:

email: mcharper_at_defiance.edu
phone: 419-783-2461

email: tcomer_at_defiance.edu
phone: 419-783-2348