High School Day:

Keith Bowden
A former high school dropout, Keith Bowden ended up on a circuitous path to his college education.  He attended university in Nova Scotia, lived for a time in Chile, and has travelled throughout Mexico.  Bowden will share stories about how the myriad experiences he encountered on his many travels, particularly in Mexico, taught him the importance of education. Read more about Bowden on the "2011 Authors" page.

Reading by Carmen Tafolla

Reading by Sandra Cisneros
Cisneros is the internationally acclaimed author of The House on Mango Street and her award-winning fiction that bridges worlds and cultures has made her known throughout the globe. She is dedicated to her craft and committed to her community. Since 2008, she has served as OLLU's Writer-in-Residence.

OLLU Drama Production, "Crimes of the Heart"

Favorite Poem Project, sponsored by Sigma Tau Delta
The Favorite Poem Project is just what the name implies: an opportunity for participants to read a poem they cherish and share it with the world. Visit the website, favoritepoem.org, to learn more about the event, established in 1998 by then-Poet Laureate Robert Pinsky.

Open Mic Night
Take a turn at the mic and share your voice with an encouraging audience of literary supporters. Read poetry, a short scene, monologue, or even perform an original song.

Faculty reading featuring Antoniette Winstead, Yvette Benavides, Michael Lueker and Nan Cuba

"Pretty in POWER." featuring spoken word artist/poet, Gabriela Garcia Medina 
As an international spoken word artist and award-winning poet, her poetry has taken her to South Africa, Cuba, Brazil, Switzerland and all over the United States. The topics she writes about range from social injustice to much more lighthearted reflections about her lingerie. Gabriela has relentlessly toured colleges, festivals and churches since 2007. Her words recently found a permanent home on the walls of Hollywood star Eva Longoria’s new restaurant in Los Angeles. Most recent are her national commercials for Dove and Toyota, which features her poetry and performance.

Reading by OLLU Visiting Writer Andrew Porter and Grace Dane Mazur
Andrew Porter will read a story from his book, The Theory of Light and Matter, a collection of short stories that explore memory and loss in suburban America.

What happens to us as we migrate back and forth between different worlds of the mind – between the Real World and the world of the Imagination? What happens to the mythical traveler who goes from the Land of the Living to make a brief visit to the Land of the Dead? Grace Dane Mazur will be reading from her new book, which addresses these fascinating questions: Hinges: Meditations on the Portals of the Imagination.