Split P, our MFA program’s signature creative writing outreach, offers MFA students a unique opportunity to hone their teaching skills and gives local kids the chance to learn directly from emerging writers in their own city. Split P fellows are selected each fall, and throughout the year they visit English and Language Arts classrooms in local public elementary schools. Fellows have freedom to design their own lessons, but the group also meets every few months to share experiences and ideas. The Split P fellowship is open to all MFA students, including those with no prior teaching experience.
If you are an educator or a prospective MFA applicant who would like to know more about the Split P program, contact Liz Countryman at countrym@mailbox.sc.edu.
Testimonials from past Split P fellows:
“Split P has been such a fun, rewarding opportunity. It allowed me to get creative and playful with my teaching and has helped me generate useful creative writing exercises for writers of all ages. I look forward to it every year.”
Matt Mossman
“Split P has enabled me to see how my creative writing endeavors function as an integral part of the community.”
Anna Barry
“It’s a different and useful kind of teaching pressure to learn how to negotiate. Kids are so purely creative, because they haven’t learned they shouldn’t be. That makes the experience kind of crazy but a ton of fun.”
Chris Koslowski
“It’s exciting and refreshing to see the joy these kids find in writing. I enjoy it as much as the kids do.”
Justin Brouckaert