» Tabula Poetica Staff

Anna Leahy's collection Constituents of Matter won the Wick Poetry Prize and was published by Kent State University Press. She has two chapbooks, Turns about a Point and Hagioscope, and her poems appear in literary journals such as the Connecticut Review, Crab Orchard Review, The Journal, Nimrod, and Phoebe. She is a contributing editor for Fifth Wednesday and Redux and edited the collection Power and Identity in the Creative Writing Classroom. She co-writes the Lofty Ambitions blog. She earned her MFA at the University of Maryland and her PhD at Ohio University. Leahy teaches in the MFA and BFA programs at Chapman University. Additional information about Anna Leahy can be found at www.amleahy.com.

Claudine Jaenichen is an Associate Professor in graphic design. Her design and research projects focus on inclusive public information and education campaigns and has been included in national and international diverse publications including, Parsons Journal for Information Mapping, Applications of Information Design, Journal of Applied Global Research, Rockport's Visual Language for Designers, and Design Principles and Practice: An International Journal. She is a Life Fellow for Communication Research Institute, a member of the International Institute of Information Design, the Interaction Design Association and American Institute of Graphic Arts. She continues her professional practice in information design, book design, exhibition, museum education, and wayfinding/wayshowing for disaster planning.

Laura Silva earned her B.A. at the University of La Verne in Journalism and comes to Chapman from The Orange County Register, where she worked as a reporter until 2006. She has recreated and maintained the Wilkinson website, including Tabula Poetica; launched the Wilkinson Review; and overseen the creation and distribution of promotional material for various programs and events, carrying out objectives of the college through communication.

Cindra Fox is pursuing her MA and MFA at Chapman University. Until her arrival, poetry was a "secret thing;" her public artistic experiences centered around photography, or writing and directing for independent television, film, and stage productions. "Ghost Town" became her first published poem in the 2010 issue of Elephant Tree, Chapman's literary journal. She continues to write both poetry and fiction, with an interest in new media.

Debbie Thacker came to Chapman University in 2007. She has a B.A. from CSULB in Comparative Literature. Coming from a teaching background, Debbie has always felt most comfortable working in an academic setting. She facilitates the various author’s visits for the Poetry Reading Series, as well as working as the English Department Assistant.

Logan Esdale's PhD (2003) is from SUNY Buffalo, where he was in the Poetics Program. Currently he is preparing "Interpersonal Space: Epistolarity and American Writing, 1852-1937" for publication. This book project works with the early 20th-century commentary on letter writing to examine the role of privacy in the creative process, the interplay of sociality and authorship, and the poetics of difference. Two chapters have been published, one in The Emily Dickinson Journal, and the other (on Gertrude Stein and Laura Riding) in the Journal of Modern Literature. He now teaches at California State University, Long Beach.

Kathy Tafolla graduated from Chapman University in May 2010 with a MA in English Literature and an MFA in Creative Writing. She currently works as a Marketing Copywriter for a successful online corporation and also finds success as a freelance writer. Presently, she is submitting a historical novel to agents and continues to write both poetry and fiction on a regular basis.

Natalie D'Auvergne holds a BA in English from Southern University, Baton Rouge, Louisana as well as dual Master's Degrees in Literary Studies and creative Writing from Chapman University, Orange, California. Natalie teaches African American Literature and writing at Southern University and is currently working on a coming-of-age novel set in her native St. Lucia. She also runs a literary blog, Aphroditeares' Blog, in her spare time.

Calvin Pennix received his MFA and MA degrees from Chapman University. His primary interest is contemporary poetry - the reading, writing, and teaching of - and his poetry has been published by ucity review, A Few Lines Magazine, Unlikely 2.0, and Counterexample Poetics. He has recently self-published his first book of poetry and is the founding editor of Quarter After.

Corin Porter received a B.A. in English from Boston College, graduating in 2010 after three years. He is enrolled in the dual-degree graduate program in English at Chapman University.