About the Event

The University Libraries is delighted to present Loyola Alumni Author Speaker, Jaswinder Bolina, PhD (BA '00). Dr. Bolina is an award-winning poet and chair of the English and creative writing departments at the University of Miami. He will read excerpts from his latest book, English as a Second Language and Other Poems (2023) and talk about what inspires his writing. Following the reading, Dr. Bolina will guide the audience through interactive writing exercises and share practical tips for kickstarting projects, perfect for anyone looking to spark their creativity. 

All are welcome! Refreshments will be served. 

Event Details

Date: Friday, April 10, 2026
Time:
1:00 p.m. Check-in and refreshments
1:15 p.m. Program starts
2:30 p.m. Program ends

Location: Lake Shore Campus, Loyola Information Commons, 1st floor near the north stairs 
Address: 6501 N. Kenmore Avenue, Chicago

Please register below to help us plan refreshments. 

Accessibility & Contact

The Information Commons is fully accessible. If you need specific accommodations for the event, please provide information when registering.

Questions? Contact Jocelyn D. Cheng, Community Relations and Coordinator, University Libraries at jcheng5@LUC.edu or (773) 508-2616.

About the Speaker

Born in Chicago, poet Jaswinder Bolina earned a BA in philosophy from Loyola University in Chicago, an MFA in creative writing from the University of Michigan, and a PhD in English with a creative writing concentration from Ohio University. As an Asian American poet, his work reflects the richness of his cultural background as well as his experiences growing up in an immigrant family. He is the author of the chapbook The Tallest Building in America (2014), The 44th of July (2019), Carrier Wave (2007), winner of the 2006 Colorado Prize for Poetry, and Phantom Camera (2013), winner of the Green Rose Prize in Poetry from New Issues Press and published in an international edition by Hachette India.

Bolina's most recent book English as a Second Language and Other Poems (Copper Canyon 2023) was awarded the 2025 Kingsley Tufts Poetry Award from Claremont Graduate University.

Compared to poets as diverse as John Ashbery, James Tate, and Dean Young, Bolina investigates language, experience, and innovative writing. Poet Ravi Shankar, writing on The Best American Poetry blog, noted that Bolina “breaks new perceptual and sonic ground,” adding “he encapsulates the American South Asian immigrant experience, at least as I’ve experienced it.”

Bolina was the 2010–2011 Elma Stuckey Liberal Arts & Sciences Emerging Poet-in-Residence at Columbia College in Chicago. He is the author of the collection of essays Of Color (2020). His critical and creative writing has been included in The Task of Un/Masking (2014), Language: A Reader for Writers (2013), Best American Poetry (2011), and Poets on Teaching: A Sourcebook (2010). Bolina currently teaches in the MFA program at the University of Miami.

Source:  Jaswinder Bolina | The Poetry Foundation

Acknowledgments

The event is co-sponsored by the Department of Theology and the University Libraries.