Welcome to 2023-2024 interns!
The CLC proudly welcomes four talented interns to its ranks for the 2023-2024 academic year. The CLC offers internships to students in their junior or senior year of pursuing their undergraduate degree, or to students in the CSU graduate school. The internships gives students an opportunity to work with one of the CLC partners and lead their own workshops to underrepresented members of the Fort Collins community, and to deepen their knowledge of and experience with the practice of community literacy through reading, projects, and community engagement. Learn more about our internship opportunities by emailing clc@colostate.edu.
Presenting Braden Bomgaars: A Senior with Diverse Academic Pursuits
Senior Braden Bomgaars is pursuing a dual major in English: Literature, and Political Science: US Government, Law, and Public Policy. Apart from his academic pursuits, Braden enjoys hiking and contributes his time to the CSU Writing Center. Braden is writing with the men at Community Corrections. One of his standout experiences was a workshop that delved into the themes of noise and silence. This thought-provoking session followed an exploration of the concept of "disrupting silence," inspired by June Jordan's work "Calling on All Silent Minorities." The group's discussions naturally evolved to explore the intersection between silence and noise, focusing on the concept of white noise.
In his free time, Braden loves experiencing the outdoors with others by way of hiking, climbing, or canyoneering. Back home, he enjoys playing guitar, reading, and playing board games in the company of his cat Butler.
Meet Mary Kusbel: A Senior with a Passion
Mary Kusbel, a dedicated senior majoring in English, brings a profound passion for her role at the CLC. Her choice to join the CLC stems from her love for English and the art of storytelling. Mary firmly believes that everyone deserves the opportunity to share their unique narrative. Through her workshop at Aspen Ridge Recovery, her primary goal is to eradicate stigmas. Among her experiences, Mary holds a special place in her heart for a workshop focused on childhood memories. In this particular session, participants engaged in deep, well-constructed discussions, fostering a supportive and powerful environment.
Her hobbies include reading, writing, hiking, and... intensive coloring books!
Introducing Hutchinson Thomas: A Junior Passionate About Communications
Hutchinson Thomas ("Hutchie") is a junior majoring in Communications. She has nurtured a lifelong love for music and the power of lyrical interpretation. Her curiosity for poetic words has led her to explore literature written by women, from renowned figures like Mary Oliver and Sylvia Plath to contemporary authors like Donna Tartt and Ottessa Moshfegh. Hutchie's recent interests revolve around delving deeper into the experiences that shape these influential authors. Working with women writers in Community Corrections and Work Release, one particularly engaging prompt involved dissecting song lyrics from various artists and genres. Each participant selected a random lyric and used it as a creative catalyst to craft a short story or poem. Some adhered closely to the song's context, while others offered unique interpretations. So far, Hutchie's most cherished aspect of being an intern is the opportunity to build meaningful connections within the writerrs in Community Corrections and Work Release. The women who attend workshops there have displayed remarkable creative freedom, crafting emotional and impactful work.
Hutchie deeply enjoys practicing yoga at YogaPod Fort Collins and utilizes it as both a physical and spiritual outlet. She is happiest when she is surrounded by friends and family. Her sisters Olivia and Bentley (and puppies Theo and Bowie) are her best friends and constantly remind her of life’s greatest joys.
Special Social Media Intern: Alex Wilson
Alexander is a second-year undergraduate student, where he is currently pursuing a dual major in Journalism, Media, Communications, and Political Science. In addition to his primary areas of study, Alexander has distinguished himself by undertaking dual minors in Film Studies and Legal Studies.
With a steadfast commitment to academic excellence and a vision for the future, Alexander aspires to continue his education by attending law school following the completion of their undergraduate degree. His long-term academic ambitions extend to the attainment of a Ph.D. in a field that aligns with his passion for law and politics.
Beyond the classroom, Alexander actively dedicates their time and energy to advocacy work aimed at promoting accessibility for fellow students. During his free moments, he finds joy in the company of friends, dissecting films, crafting thought-provoking poetry, and delving into philosophical discussions.
If you've been following along, you've seen the CLC involved in all kinds of 'water works' during the last few years...
Over the summer we printed and distributed the responses to our Wall of Water exhibits from last year in a booklet called "Fort Collins Water Stories." It included responses from pop-up displays at several of the Poudre Libraries.
On Saturday, September 9, we popped up again at the 1883 Fort Collins Water Works, a historical landmark and Water Interpretive Center where visitors learn about the mechanics of water delivery through artifacts, maps and displays.
Keep scrolling to see examples of our water pop-up and more!
The CLC goes deeper
The Conference on Community Writing, held October 12-14 at various locations in Denver, gave an opportunity for conference members to deepen their experience around numerous ways that community writing can "Activate Radical Imagination."
Through CLC pop-ups, we were able to demonstrate the power of writing in spaces limited by time/event/audience. The CLC designed and facilitated three pop-up writing walls at the biennial event this year. The first invited attendees to tell stories about community writing in their home communities. On Day 2, we invited stories about radical community engagement and possibilities, and we demonstrated a writing water popup on Day 3. [See first and second photos, above].
The three-day event allowed interns and leadership to share our work and learn of other community literacy spaces, from sidewalk poetics in Denver, to refugee sites in Iraq.
So... we popped up again!
This time at the English Possibilities Fair.
And maybe you've seen this graphic already (that's intern Braden smiling at the public) -- because maybe you're already following us on Instagram at @csu_speakout!
If not -- keep an eye on the great content our Sociail Media Intern, Alex Wilson, is creating to spotlight the CLC, our work, and our interns!
Do you want to volunteer to lead workshops?
Let us know at clc@colostate.edu and we're happy to talk to you! Or find one of our interns in the CLC office in Eddy 346A -- they'll be happy to tell you all about the challenges, the highs, and the lows (not too many of them!)
And take several copies of our journals to read, and then get them out into your world!
Please consider supporting our work!
The CLC creates alternative literacy opportunities to educate and empower underserved populations, and sponsors university-community literacy collaborations. Through our workshops, we confront stereotypes of at-risk youth, men and women who are incarcerated, and other young writers dealing with confinement. We circulate the stories and creative work of community writers through print and multi-media publications. We believe that such dynamic literacy activities are key to individual success, cultural awareness, and a more socially just world.
If you would like to become a volunteer in one of our programs, please let us know at clc@colostate.edu. We are always looking to add thoughtful volunteers to our team. We will begin a new semester toward the end of January -- let us know before then if you would like to join. We train!