Fall 2023 English Community Events
All English events are held in the English Department suite on the 5th floor of Leonard Hall except where noted.
- Sep. 6 Wednesday: English Fall Semester Kickoff (11:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m. in the English Department suite)
- Event Coordinator: Dr. Gian Pagnucci (IUP English Chair)
- Sep. 15 Friday: New Growth Arts Review (NGAR) Launch & Pizza Party (4:00 p.m.-5:30 p.m. in the English Department suite)
- Event Coordinators: Heather Jackson (NGAR Editor-in-Chief) and Dr. John Branscum (NGAR Advisor and IUP English Associate Professor)
- Sep. 26 Tuesday: English General Advising Session & Pizza Party! (4:00 p.m.-5:30 p.m. in Leonard Hall 116)
- Event Coordinators: Dr. Emily Wender (IUP English Professor and Director of English Education), Dr. Daniel Weinstein (IUP English Associate Professor and Director of English B.A. Program), and Dr. Gian Pagnucci (IUP English Chair)
- Sep. 30 Saturday: Poeming Through the Dark–An open mic poetry event where anyone can read their work for 3-5 minutes (6:00 p.m.-8:00 p.m. at the Indiana Theater [637 Philadelphia St.])
- A community-based evening of poetry and spoken word. Poeming Through the Dark is an inclusive space meant for cultivating connection & community through poetry & self-expression. Based in Western Pennsylvania, this project & our events aim to let words light a path toward something new, bringing together passionate poets & curious listeners to create an illuminating open-mic experience. Join us, bring your words or someone else’s words, bring your friends, & revel in the power of art & joy with hopes of creating a future through the dark.
- Sign-ups are in person & first come, first serve. All who sign up can read for approximately 3-5 mins. That can vary depending on how many people show, but 4 mins is a safe bet. We will put the sign-up sheet out 15 min before the start of the event. There will be 15-20 slots.
- Come Poem With Us!
- Event Coordinator: Matthew Stumpf (IUP English Literature and Criticism Doctoral Student)
- Oct. 1-7: Banned Books Week
- Oct. 4: Banned Books Readout–any student can read from a banned book at this event (Noon-1:00 p.m. on the first floor of the Library near the coffee shop)
- Event Coordinator: Dr. Theresa McDevitt (IUP Outreach Librarian)
- Oct. 6: Rare Banned Books Display and Presentation– (Noon-1:00 p.m. in the IUP Special Collections and University Archives, Stapleton Library Room 302)
- A special presentation about selected rare books will include: Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, the Origin of Species, and the works of H.G. Wells.
- Event Coordinator: Dr. Harrison Wick (IUP Special Collections Librarian and University Archivist)
- American Library Association (ALA) Banned & Challenged Books Website
- Oct. 4: Banned Books Readout–any student can read from a banned book at this event (Noon-1:00 p.m. on the first floor of the Library near the coffee shop)
- Oct. 3: NCTE IUP Informational Meeting (5:30 p.m.-6:30 p.m. in the Writing Center–Stabley Library, Room 210)
- Oct. 20 Friday: The National Day on Writing
- Oct. 20 Friday: A writing craft talk by Jolene McIlwain, author of Sidle Creek (10:20 a.m.-11:10 a.m. in Leonard Hall 113)

- Oct. 20 Friday: Lunch with Jolene McIlwain, author of Sidle Creek (11:30 a.m at the Allenwood; Lunch is only $8)
- Event Coordinator: Dr. Bryna Siegel Finer (IUP English Professor and Director of IUP Undergraduate Writing)
- Oct. 30 Monday.: Into the Archives: Shakespeare Unbound with Professor Chris Orchard (6:00 p.m.-7:oo p.m. in Elkin Hall Great Room)
- Oct. 31 Tueday: English Halloween Party (11:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m. in the English Department suite)
- Nov. 18 Saturday: Poeming Through the Dark–An open mic poetry event where anyone can read their work for 3-5 minutes (6:00 p.m.-8:00 p.m. at the Indiana Theater [637 Philadelphia St.])
- A community-based evening of poetry and spoken word. Poeming Through the Dark is an inclusive space meant for cultivating connection & community through poetry & self-expression. Based in Western Pennsylvania, this project & our events aim to let words light a path toward something new, bringing together passionate poets & curious listeners to create an illuminating open-mic experience. Join us, bring your words or someone else’s words, bring your friends, & revel in the power of art & joy with hopes of creating a future through the dark.
- Sign-ups are in person & first come, first serve. All who sign up can read for approximately 3-5 mins. That can vary depending on how many people show, but 4 mins is a safe bet. We will put the sign-up sheet out 15 min before the start of the event. There will be 15-20 slots.
- Come Poem With Us!
- Event Coordinator: Matthew Stumpf (IUP English Literature and Criticism Doctoral Student)
- Dec. 13 Wednesday: English Winter Warmup (10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. in the English Department suite)
English Community Ongoing Events
- Bi-Weekly Thursday Meetings: Sigma Tau Delta (4:00 p.m.-5:30 p.m. in Leonard Hall 116)
- Meeting Coordinator: Grace Fette (IUP English major and IUP Sigma Tau Delta President)

- New Growth Arts Review (NGAR)
- NGAR invites all IUP students to submit poems, stories, photos, and pictures of artwork to the next issue of IUP’s New Growth Arts Review.
- Submissions are being accepted from Oct. 1 2023 until Feb. 1st, 2024.
- This year’s issue theme is “Fairy Tales & Myth,” but submissions on other topics are accepted.
- Please visit the NGAR website for more information:
- https://iupngar.wordpress.com/submit/
- Also, if you are interested in receiving a copy of the last issue of NGAR or want to help out with the next issue, please email NGAR Editor-in-Chief Heather Jackson <gfvbc@iup.edu> NGAR Advisor Dr. John Branscum<jbcs@iup.edu>.
IUP Community Events
- Sep. 18 Monday: Constitution Day–Public Reading of the U.S. Constitution (Get a free t-shirt and cookie by taking part in a reading of the U.S. Constitution from Noon-1:30 p.m. in the Oak Grove in front of the library)
- Event Coordinator: IUP Political Science Chair Dr. Gwen Torges
- Sep. 18 Monday: Constitution Day–What Would Our Founding Fathers Say? (A fun presentation where IUP professors dress up as the founding fathers from 6:00 p.m.-7:oo p.m. in the HUB Ohio Room)
- Event Coordinator: IUP Political Science Chair Dr. Gwen Torges
- Sep. 26 Tuesday: Flu Shot Clinic (all day in the HUB Monongahela Room)
- Sep. 26 Tuesday: Discussion by Holocaust Survivors Oscar Singer and Albert Farhy (6:00 p.m.-7:oo p.m. in Elkin Hall Great Room)
- Oct. 2. Monday: Reading by Dion Leonard, the author of Finding Gobi, (6:30-8:00 p.m. at Gingerbread Man Running Co. on Philadelphia St.)
- Oct. 6-8: IUP Homecoming Weekend
- Oct. 7 Saturday: Homecoming Parade (10 a.m. along Philadelphia St.)
- Oct. 7 Saturday: Annual Coal Bowl Game against the California University Vulcans (2:00 p.m. kick off @ George P. Miller Stadium)
- Oct. 17 Tuesday: Flu Shot Clinic (5:00 p.m.-8:00 p.m. in the Health Services Building at 901 Maple Street)
- Oct. 18 Wednesday: Flu Shot Clinic (11:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m. in the Health Services Building at 901 Maple Street)
Indiana Community Events
- Oct. 9-13: National Coming Out Week
- Oct. 9 Monday: A Conversation & Book Signing with Lenny Pinna, Co-Author of A Face From Uranus and Director of Letters to Uranus (The story of a 19-year-old in World War II struggling with his gender identity from 6:00 p.m.-7:oo p.m. in Elkin Hall Great Room)
- Human Rights Campaign: National Coming Out Day
- “What is National Coming Out Day: Here’s How It Started, What Its Goal Is, and How to Celebrate”
