Acknowledgements

We owe a deep debt of gratitude to our faculty colleagues who nominated their students’ essays for publication, without whom this issue would not have been possible. Instructors whose students’ work is featured in this volume include Spencer French, Ian Gerdon, Sandra M. Gustafson, Whitney Lew James, Matthew Kilbane, Fr. Stephen Koeth, Noemi Fernandez Labarga, Michelle Marvin, Erin McLaughlin, Olivier Morel, Nathaniel Myers, Brian Ó Conchubhair, Tatiana Reinoza, Joshua Seachris, Jessica Shumake, Kristen Sieranski, Yasmin Solomonescu, Jessica Thomas, and Joanna Lin Want.

Special thanks are due to members of the editorial board, a team of volunteers who devoted considerable time and energy to the task of choosing the very best essays from nearly seventy submissions.

We would also like to express our heartfelt appreciation to a number of people whose influence is evident in this volume. Assistant Editor Anila Shree was invaluable for her work in organizing submissions for editing, reading essays, compiling records, and, most importantly, genially sharing her thoughtful insights and suggestions to help build an excellent issue. Sheila Christophorou, Administrative Coordinator in the University Writing Program, proved herself indispensable in handling many of the logistical elements of the issue, not least some of our primary communications. Previous co-editor Joanna Lin Want offered solid recommendations and guidance at the beginning of this volume’s journey to life, while future co-editor Whitney Lew James made significant contributions in its final editing stages. Furthermore, Patrick Clauss, our program chair, continually provided crucial advice, helping to shepherd Fresh Writing to its new online home.

We wish to extend further thanks to Bridget Hoyt, Curator of Education at the Snite Museum of Art. In addition, we are grateful for the tireless work of members of several different units across the university: the Center for Research Computing, the Web and Software Engineering Unit at Notre Dame’s Hesburgh Library, the Office of Communications in the College of Arts and Letters, and the Web Team at ND Creative—these members include Melissa Harden, Robert Fox, Erik Runyon, Steven Mattison, Theia Wolfe, Elicia Dennis, Josh Weinhold, and John Slott, among others. All of them assisted with Fresh Writing’s transition from the Library to its new digital location in Arts and Letters, along with redesigning the site to create its current look.

Of course, the issue would not exist at all without the many students whose work was submitted for publication this year. Fresh Writing exists in celebration of student writing, whether or not it is featured in any given issue.

Finally, to the authors included in this volume, it is with great pride and gratitude that we present your ideas and commitments to the Notre Dame community and beyond. We feel honored to create a space in which the arguments and experiences reflected in your work shape and define the thriving intellectual life on our campus and beyond.

As always, thanks for your support of Fresh Writing.

Nathaniel Myers and Damian Zurro, Co-Editors