WT Distinguished Lecture Series to Showcase Nationally Recognized Poet

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CANYON, Texas— A nationally renowned poet will read works about building a meaningful life in a special upcoming event for West Texas A&M University’s Dorothy Patterson Poetry Series.

Poet Megan Fernandes will read her poetry at 7 p.m. Oct. 10 in the Sybil B. Harrington Fine Arts Complex Recital Hall on WT’s Canyon campus. She also will offer a poetry workshop at 12:15 p.m. Oct. 11 in Classroom Center 322.

Both events, which are free and open to the public, are made possible thanks to collaboration between the poetry series, the WT Distinguished Lecture Series and the Department of English, Philosophy and Modern Languages.

“Megan is a seismograph for the smallest fluctuations of feeling, capturing the resentment mixed into love, the self-doubt in desire, the tiny reassurances you might find in mourning for a lost lover,” said Dr. Matthew Harrison, WT’s Wendy and Stanley Marsh 3 Professor of Shakespeare. “Ultimately, I think, the poems are about building a meaningful life, not out of others’ expectations or your own, but out of the materials you have at hand: friends, lovers, losses, books, cities and conversations.”

Born in Canada, raised in Philadelphia, and of East African Goan descent, Fernandes draws on a wide range of influences, from the blues of Muddy Water to the poetry of Frank O’Hara. Her poems range from city scenes to nearly empty beaches, from Arizona to Alberta, from vacations in Italy to breaking down in tears at the Seniors’ Coloring Hour at the Library.

“A child of immigrant parents, Megan’s attuned to the complexities of race, gender, nationality, class and family structure and attentive to how these might intersect and complicate each other,” Harrison said.

The South Asian American author has been featured in The New Yorker, Chicago Review and Boston Review. In addition, she has published three books of poetry: “The Kingdom and After” (2015), “Good Boys” (2020), and “I Do Everything I’m Told” (2023).

Fernandes, who serves as an associate professor of English and the writer-in-residence at Lafayette College, teaches poetry and creative nonfiction.

Fostering an appreciation of the arts is a key component of the University’s long-range plan, WT 125: From the Panhandle to the World.

That plan is fueled by the historic One West comprehensive fundraising campaign, which reached its initial $125 million goal 18 months after publicly launching in September 2021. The campaign’s new goal is to reach $175 million by 2025; currently, it has raised nearly $160 million.

About WT’s Distinguished Lecture Series

The Distinguished Lecture Series was created to enhance education at WT by inviting people of national prominence to speak to students and the community about important issues. For information, visit wtamu.edu/academics/distinguished-lecture-series.

About West Texas A&M University

WT, a Regional Research University, is redefining excellence in Canyon, Texas, on a 342-acre residential campus, as well as the Harrington Academic Hall WTAMU Amarillo Center in downtown Amarillo. Established in 1910, the University has been part of The Texas A&M University System since 1990. WT, a Hispanic Serving Institution since 2016, boasts an enrollment of more than 9,000 and offers 58 undergraduate degree programs, one associate degree, and 44 graduate degrees, including an integrated bachelor’s and master’s degree, a specialist degree and two doctoral degrees. The University is also home to the Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum, the largest history museum in the state and the home of one of the Southwest’s finest art collections. The Buffaloes are a member of the NCAA Division II Lone Star Conference and offers 14 men’s and women’s athletics programs.

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