The International Writing Program (IWP)

And now we've passed $5,000 raised. Thanks so much!

A photo of Christopher Merrill speaking to an audience of writers in the Shambaugh House. The One Day for Iowa logo is superimposed, as well as the following text: "Thanks for your support! More than $3,000 from 37 donors so far!"

Thank you to everyone who has donated to support the IWP as part of this year's #1DayForIowa event! We've already raised more than $3,000 thanks to your generous support. Please help share the word, and if you're able, donate at 1dayforiowa.org/IWP-25.

We're thrilled to say that we've already raised more than $2,500 dollars thanks to the generous support of 28 donors. We appreciate it so much! Contribute to the cause at 1dayforiowa.org/IWP-25.

#1DayForIowa

A photo of the 2024 Fall Residency cohort outside the Shambaugh House, with the One Day for Iowa logo superimposed.

Today is #1DayForIowa, the University of Iowa's annual online giving day and celebration, and the IWP needs your help! Our recent loss of State Department funding makes every donation especially important. You can donate at 1dayforiowa.org/IWP-25!

I wrote about the International Writing Program at the University of Iowa, which was a crucial part of my literary education. It’s now fighting for its future after losing its funding last week. Free post; no paywall.

garthgreenwell.substack.com/p/a-city-of-... @uiiwp.bsky.social

Opinion: IWP’s work is in the national interest Annabel Shu of Atlanta, Ga. reacts to a pot of dolma, a traditional Armenian dish, during a cooking session for …

IWP’s work is in the national interest
www.thegazette.com/staff-editor...

Shelly Criswell Obituary and Online Memorial (2025) Shelly Criswell Obituary and Online Memorial (2025). Share your favorite memories Shelly and celebrate their life with the Criswell family on their online obituary.

A memorial fund has been established in her honor: www.legacy.com/us/obituarie...

The staff of the International Writing Program mourn Shelly, whose years of service on behalf of writers and readers around the world as Fall Residency coordinator (2020–2025) were deeply impactful on the program’s participants and their extended communities.

A photo of Shelly, her son, and Christopher Merrill smiling at the 2023 Fall Residency closing celebration.

It is with profound sadness that we share the news of Shelly J. Criswell’s passing. Shelly was in her home, surrounded by her family, when she died on Saturday, March 8, after a prolonged battle with cancer.

US Department of State halts International Writing Program funding The U.S. Department of State notified the University of Iowa International Writing program on Feb. 26 that its grants through the department’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs were being ter...

The State Department terminated its longstanding support for the University of Iowa's International Writing Program, which has existed since 1967 (involving 3 Nobel Prize winners).
U Iowa's canceling several programs and searching for new funding sources.
now.uiowa.edu/news/2025/03...

This is heartbreaking and infuriating.

One of the US’s longest-standing cultural partnerships, hugely effective in dozens of countries, ended.

As a diplomat, I saw first-hand what a powerful tool the IWP has been in furthering American interests. A mortifying shame—like so much else right now.

Terrible e injusto

"We are devastated by the abrupt end of this 58year partnership and are working closely with University of Iowa General Counsel and Grant Accounting to review the terminations, understand their full impact, and respond in the best interest of the organization"
@uiiwp.bsky.social

Finds for Writers - Erika Dreifus Gleanings from the past week.

Among this week's finds for the #WritingCommunity: @authorsguild.bsky.social's new tracker; @uiiwp.bsky.social announcement; RIP, Peter Elbow; paperback paucity. www.erikadreifus.com/2025/03/publ...

GAH. For me as a translation MFA student in the early 2000s, the community & camaraderie of @uiiwp.bsky.social was pure magic. To have the chance to collaborate with Malagasy poets & Argentinian short story writers, to debate with Polish philosophers & laugh with Irish journalists—what a gift.

US Department of State halts International Writing Program funding The U.S. Department of State notified the University of Iowa International Writing program on Feb. 26 that its grants through the department’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs were being ter...

The end of an era...
now.uiowa.edu/news/2025/03...

State Department: UI International Writing Program no longer of ‘national interest’; terminates grants After 58 years of collaborative diplomacy, the U.S. Department of State has notified the University of Iowa’s esteemed International Writing Program that it is terminating its grants because they “no ...

We appreciate this story by Vanessa Miller at the Gazette.

The IWP does great work and will continue to, but this is still such a blow

In 2005, I remember one of the visiting writers saying (paraphrasing), "Even if I spend just a week visiting a country, I feel like I've lived there. I develop a deep personal attachment to people and places." How many future writers will be deprived of this enriching, irreplaceable experience?

This is devastating...

This is devastating. IWP's impact on international writing and translated literature can't be understated. I have no words.

This is devastating. For almost 60 years, the IWP has hosted translators and writers from around the world, especially young and emerging ones. I spent a glorious summer at their events and it’s why I ended up studying literature.

US Department of State halts International Writing Program funding The U.S. Department of State notified the University of Iowa International Writing program on Feb. 26 that its grants through the department’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs were being ter...

The US State Department has canceled the grants that provide much of the support for the International Writing Program at the University of Iowa. 90% of those funds are spent in the US, & the program is top-notch, hosting 3 future Nobel laureates. @uiiwp.bsky.social

now.uiowa.edu/news/2025/03...

This is devastating. The IWP is the crown jewel of the U of Iowa & has done so much for literature around the world, but it's also done so much for Iowa. This update feels especially sad coming one week after a beautiful tribute to the program's co-founder, the incomparable Hualing Nieh Engle.

To support the IWP as we begin to rebuild, please visit this website: bit.ly/support-iwp

Despite this disappointing turn of events, the IWP’s mission to promote mutual understanding through creative writing and literature remains unchanged; with the help of a limited number of other partners, we will still hold a 2025 Fall Residency even while pursuing new sources of funding.

will continue to support writers.

We are devastated by the abrupt end of this 58-year partnership and are working closely with University of Iowa General Counsel and Grant Accounting to review the terminations, understand their full impact, and respond in the best interest of the organization.

Distance Learning courses, and Emerging Voices programs. The overall Fall Residency cohort will be reduced by around half due to the loss of federally funded participants; the IWP’s other long-time funding partners, including a combination of donors, grants, foreign ministries of culture, and NGOs,

This notification explained that the IWP’s awards “no longer effectuate agency priorities,” nor align “with agency priorities and national interest.” The immediate result was the cancellation of Between the Lines (the IWP’s summer youth program), and the dissolution of Lines and Spaces Exchanges,

🧵Dear Friends: We write today with a difficult update. On Wednesday, Feb. 26, the International Writing Program (IWP) learned that its grants with the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, were being terminated.

The text “The January Watchlist: Recommended new and forthcoming books in translation, selected by Tobias Carroll” with the covers of the books in the Watchlist.

The January Watchlist is in, with Tobias Carroll’s top translated books to start your 2025 off right—read on for a glimpse at what’s inside! https://buff.ly/4h7hqpP (1/8)