The Holden Fund for Diversity
The MFA Program for Writers at Warren Wilson College, the first and most distinguished low residency program for poets and fiction writers, has always been exceptionally diverse in gender, age, occupation, academic background, and aesthetic views. Ethnic and cultural diversity, however, has proven to be more challenging.
It is not easy to attract students of color without first achieving a kind of critical mass, so that no student has the discomfort of feeling overly visible or tokenized. This can be a difficult cycle to break.
Inaugurated in 1995 by a generous donor, the Holden Scholarship was named for the late Dr. Reuben Holden, a revered President of Warren Wilson, who brought the MFA Program to the College and was its unfailing friend. During the aegis of the FOW, the Holden Scholarship has been sustained by the generosity of faculty, alumni, current students, and other donors. The scholarship has helped to build a more ethnically diverse population and brought to the Program students of extraordinary talent, some of whom could not otherwise have afforded graduate work.
In order to increase the numbers of students we are able to support, FOW created the Holden Diversity Fund in 2013. This fund offers grants in smaller amounts to students, called “Opportunity Grants” and full tuition grants to Holden Scholars.
We thank everyone who has supported our efforts to create a more inclusive literary community within reach of all artists.
Beneficiaries of The Holden Scholarship:
Current Holden Scholars
Aaron Banks
Tobi Kassim
Teri Vela
Past Holden Scholars:
Sasha Hom, Fiction Class of January 2022
Koye Oyedeji, Fiction Class of July 2021
Alberto Reyes Morgan, Fiction Class of July 2020
Hannah Torres Peet, Fiction Class of January 2019
Cynthia Dewi Oka, Poetry Class of July 2019
Andres Reconco, Fiction Class of July 2018
David Mills, Poetry Class of January 2016
Tommy Blount, Poetry Class of January 2014
Reginald Dwayne Betts, Poetry Class of July 2010
Chloe Martinez, Poetry Class of July 2009
Bora Lee, Fiction Class of January 2007
Natalie Baszile, Fiction Class of July 2007
Kathy Nguyen, Fiction Class of January 2007
Krystn Lee, Fiction Class of January 2007
Victoria Chang, Poetry Class of July 2005
George Higgins, Poetry Class of January 2002
Vyvyane Loh, Fiction Class of January 2001
Rodney Jack, Poetry Class of July 1999
Ven Begamudre, Fiction Class of July 1999
A. Van Jordan, Poetry Class of 1998
Fred Arroyo, Fiction Class of 1997
