English graduate students awarded
Intro Prize for poem, essay

Morgantown, WV, April 23, 2007: Two West Virginia University graduate students were named winners of the prestigious Intro Prize, awarded annually by the Associated Writing Programs (AWP).

Amanda Cobb, of Elkins, was honored for her poem “Filter,” which will be published in the literary journal C O N T R O L L E D B U R N . Erin Tocknell, of Nashville, Tenn., wrote the prize-winning essay, “Our Most Segregated Hour,” which will appear in The Tampa Review.

The Intro Journals Project is a literary competition for the discovery & publication of the best new works by students enrolled in the programs of AWP. WVU’s creative writing program is a member of AWP, and offers creative writing classes at the graduate and undergraduate level. Both Cobb and Tocknell are currently pursuing the MFA Degree in Creative Writing in WVU’s Department of English.

Each AWP member program is eligible to nominate a small number of students for the Intro Prize. There are more than 400 undergraduate creative writing programs in the United States, and more than 300 graduate programs; a total of fifteen students nationwide are selected for the prize.

The Department of English is housed in the Eberly College of Arts and Sciences at West Virginia University.

For more information, contact James Harms, Department of English, West Virginia University at 304-293-3107 ext. 33451.

W-V-U