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The American Writers Museum 2018 Annual Report 1

Letter from the Co-Chairs

he American Writers Museum (AWM) history, our identity, our culture, and our daily was born in May, 2017, and experienced lives. We will continue to take advantage of T a growth spurt in 2018. The founders the AWM’s uniqueness and reputation as we of this museum never doubted it was a great implement our ambitious plans for broader idea, and it’s gratifying to see that the world reach and deeper impact. agrees. Attendance increased 40 percent over Thanks to many generous donors, and careful the comparable time period of 2017, visitor financial management, the AWM is in a stable reviews continue to be overwhelmingly positive, financial position. Many old and new friends and more of today’s established and emerging stepped up to provide major support in 2018, authors are coming to the AWM to speak and we are thrilled that they see the value with growing audiences. We are serving more and impact of our exhibits and programs. We elementary, middle and high school students, remain grateful to the AWM’s dedicated Board and we continue to improve their educational of Directors, advisors, staff and, especially, experience. supporters like you. During 2018, the AWM Board and staff The end of 2018 marks the end of our term conducted a careful analysis of what we have as the AWM’s inaugural Co-chairs, although learned and how the AWM can reach its greatest we will always support this special place that potential as a cultural and educational resource. was brought to life by an army of creative and From this analysis, we developed a strategic tireless believers. plan that will guide us in the coming years. Thank you for being part of the American The plan is grounded in the AWM’s mission to Writers Museum. engage the public in celebrating American writers and exploring their influence on our

M. Hill Hammock, Co-chair Roberta Rubin, Co-chair 2

Letter from the President

the American Writers Museum, we honor the past with exhibits that At celebrate American writers from throughout our country’s history, we promote the present through in-person programs with today’s writers, and, most importantly, we use our exhibits, author programs, and student curriculum to inspire the future with the Write In youth education program. This 2018 annual report highlights our growth and impact in all three areas. These accomplishments lay the audience are always interesting and wide- foundation for continued growth and will allow ranging—this lively exchange of ideas is what us to take advantage of new opportunities to the AWM is all about. improve your museum. Good writing can broaden our minds, and in Highlights of 2018 include two new temporary turn, it can change the world. The AWM conveys exhibits: Bob Dylan: Electric which examines this idea by presenting writers and their work in Dylan as a writer and influencer, andFrederick a totally new way. When students visit the AWM Douglass: Agitator, which explores how as part of the Write In program, they experience Douglass used writing as a force for change as hands-on, technology-based exhibits and hear he fought for equality in the 19th century. from today’s writers at special author events As the AWM becomes increasingly well-known, just for them. Write In looks at regular school we continue to attract some of today’s most curriculum through a new lens, giving students a popular authors to discuss their work with the new perspective about what writing can be, and public. In 2018, we were pleased to host 49 how it can be an important part of their lives. events, including U.S. Supreme Court Justice I hope you take pride in what you make possible Sonia Sotomayor, discussing her memoir at the AWM. We would not be on this upward Turning Pages, Pulitzer-prize winner Viet Thanh trajectory without supporters like you. On behalf Nguyen, Editor of The Displaced: Refugee of everyone at the American Writers Museum, Writers on Refugee Lives, Tayari Jones, author thank you for your support and endorsement. of the bestselling novel An American Marriage, and AJ Finn, author of another bestseller, Carey Cranston, President The Woman in the Window, to name a few. Conversations between authors and our 3

The American Writers Museum experience is inspiring and memorable because of its modern, hands-on exhibits. They are designed to guide visitors Honoring the Past through a deep dive into American EXHIBITS writing and its lasting influence. Permanent exhibits celebrate a wide range of American writers, the writing process, and the ways that writers and readers 1 connect. We are often asked if our permanent exhibits will change or be updated. The answer is yes. In 2018, the following additions were made, informed by feedback from our visitors: 1. Ten new works of literature were added to the Featured Works tables, which provide extensive information, including audio excerpts, on various masterworks. Each Featured Works Table now holds information on 35 works, with more to be added. 2. First Lines is a new, original exhibit piece at the north end of the S. Leigh Pierson and Douglas R. Conant Reader’s Hall. Throughout the development of the AWM, we 2 have benefitted from support and counsel from some of America’s greatest living writers. Over several years, the museum founders asked these writers to pen a new first line to something they have never written. First Lines is a collection of delightful and varied “first line” cards from writers including Judy Blume, , , David McCullough, and . 3. As part of the popular 2017 exhibit The Beat Journey: Jack Kerouac’s On , the AWM commissioned the creation of a digital version of the iconic first draft scroll in the exhibit. After the exhibit, the museum maintained and moved the digital scroll, which is on a 55-inch touch screen, allowing visitors to see the entire novel, and zoom in to see Kerouac’s original typewritten, stream-of-consciousness storytelling and handwritten notes. The digital Kerouac Scroll is now a permanent AWM exhibit. 4. Several new book choices were added to the Reader’s 3 Choice kiosks, based on visitors’ suggestions.

4 4 2018 Temporary Exhibits Capturing Stories: Photographs of Writers by Art Shay, closed Oct. 2018 Laura Ingalls Wilder: From Prairie to Page, closed June 2018

Andy Anway in the John and Cathie Estey Nation of Writers. Photo: John Zich

AWM Exhibit Designer Andy Anway, Founder of Frederick Douglass: Agitator Bob Dylan: Electric Amaze Design Opened June 2018 Opened October 2018 Andy Anway is the designer of The Roberta Rubin Writer’s Room The Meijer Exhibit Gallery the AWM’s permanent exhibits, This exhibit focuses on Douglass’s writing This exhibit examines Dylan as a and activism from 1865–the year slavery songwriter, looking specifically at the album and continues to work with us to ended–until his death in 1895, including Highway 61 Revisited; his controversial design new temporary exhibits his advocacy for the 13th, 14th, and 15th performance at the 1965 Newport Folk that keep the AWM experience amendments; his many speeches and essays Festival, where he played electric for the fresh and timely. on equal rights for African-Americans and first time; the 1965 documentary of Dylan’s women; and his involvement with the World’s tour of England, Don’t Look Back; and In 2018, Andy led the team to Columbian Exposition in Chicago. quotes and music from the many writers design and build Bob Dylan: and musicians he influenced. A video screen in the exhibit features Electric and Frederick Douglass: teenagers from Young Chicago Authors Bob Dylan: Electric also spotlights Dylan reading excerpts from Douglass’s speeches, as the winner of the 2016 Nobel Prize for Agitator. Andy and his team carrying his still-relevant messages forward. Literature, with audio of Dylan reading his approach every project with the Nobel Prize Lecture, in which he describes Curators visitor experience in mind, and his musical and literary influences. John Stauffer, Professor of English, never fail to create exhibits that American Studies and African American Curator surprise and delight. Studies, Alan Light, renowned music journalist Keidrick Roy, Ph.D. candidate, Artifacts on loan from American Studies, Harvard University Jim Irsay, Mitch Blank, Gary Ollman, “Working with the AWM Partners Bill Pagel, the Woody Guthrie Center, has been a labor of and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Frederick Douglass National Historic Site love, in large measure The Frederick Douglass Family Initiatives Sponsors because of the gifted Sponsors Poetry Foundation • Robin & Sandy Stuart and dedicated group of Allstate • Wintrust American Songwriter Magazine Komarek-Hyde-McQueen Foundation Ivan & Kathy Kane • Susan & Doug Lyons supporters, contributors, The Donnelley Foundation • Jane Irwin Shanti Nagarkatti • Roberta Rubin and staff that it has Joyce & Don Rumsfeld • Patricia Dodson Ken & Jossy Nebenzahl attracted since its Olivia Bedi’s Fabulous Facebook Friends Jane Rotrosen Agency inception. The visitor experience reflects the joy we all feel in the presence of great writers and writing.” — Andy Anway 5

AUTHORPromoting the Present EVENTS The AWM offers author events year-round, approximately once a week, bringing the public face-to-face with writers in a variety of genres. Author events are often thematically tied to exhibits–in 2018 we initiated the Singers and Songwriters Series to complement Bob Dylan: Electric. In conjunction with Frederick Douglass: Agitator, we hosted Kenneth B. Morris, Jr., great-great-great grandson of Frederick Douglass, to speak about Douglass’s legacy, Manisha Sinha on her new book, The Slave’s Cause, and co-hosted the Frederick Douglass Mixtape with Young Chicago Authors. In 2018, the AWM hosted 49 events attended by 4,830 people.

Last night’s event at the American Writers Museum was fantastic. I talked about Author Events Africanfuturism, my forthcoming comic series LaGuardia, HBO, and Marvel...and read a bit of The Displaced: Refugee Writers the new story “Sacred Fire” – Nnedi Okorafor on Refugee Lives: Viet Thanh Nguyen, Kao Kalia Yang, & Vu Tran and the Siege of Chicago: Maureen The Radium Girls: Kate Moore Corrigan & J. Michael Lennon Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk: Turning Pages: U.S. Supreme Kathleen Rooney Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor Viet Thanh Nguyen, Kao Kalia The Three Escapes of Hannah 1,000 Books to Read Before Yang and Vu Tran Arendt: Ken Krimstein You Die: James Mustich & Elizabeth Taylor The Rub of Time: Martin Amis Call Me By Your Name: Who Fears Death & Black Panther: Long Live the King: Fantasy and Science Fiction writer André Aciman Nnedi Okorafor Nnedi Okorafor Scarface and the Untouchable: Max Allan Collins & A. Brad Revolution Song: Russell Shorto Schwartz Mr. Dickens and His Carol: Shell Game: Sara Paretsky Samantha Silva John Woman: Walter Mosley An American Marriage: Tayari Jones Voices from the Rust Belt: Anne Trubek & Contributors The Slave’s Cause: Manisha Sinha Becoming Madeline: A Biography of the Author of A Wrinkle in Time Box Girl: My Part Time Job by Her Granddaughters: Charlotte as an Art Installation: Jones Voiklis and Lena Roy Lilibet Snellings A Few Red Drops: The Chicago Race The Woman in the Window: Riot of 1919: Claire Hartfield A.J. Finn & Gillian Flynn Harbor Me & The Day You Begin: Heartland: Ana Simo Jacqueline Woodson The Hunting Accident: David L. Carlson Sex and the City and Us: Jennifer Keishin Armstrong Pipe Dreams: Erin Banco The Consuming Fire: John Scalzi Electric Arches: Eve Ewing The Widower’s Notebook: Jonathan Santlofer All You Can Ever Know: Nicole Chung 6

So grateful to @americanwritersmuseum for inviting me to be part of their First Book series—what a beautiful space for an event! Thank you to all the old & new friends who packed the museum on a cold night to talk about #allyoucaneverknow. I had the most wonderful time. – Nicole Chung

Singers & Songwriters Dessa Ketch Secor Rapper and writer Dessa, signs copies of her book My Own Devices: True Stories from Louie Pérez the Road on Music, Science and Senseless Love Robbie Fulks

Glory Edim, founder of the Public Conversations Well-Read Black Girl literary movement, reads from her book. Zora Neale Hurston’s Barracoon: Laura Baskes Litwin & Tracy Sherrod A Celebration of Great Science Writing: David Quammen & Sy Montgomery Sue Rutsen on Nelson Algren The Thrill of the Grass: Celebrating Baseball Writing for the Ages Fiction and Foreign Policy with Shermin Kruse Rita Coburn Whack on Maya Angelou Kenneth B. Morris on the Legacy of Frederick Douglass

The Frederick Douglass Mixtape: Had a great event @AWMuseum tonight in Chicago. Workshop and Open Mic Night This place is like Disneyland for Writers! Glory Edim on the Literary Movement – Kenneth B. Morris, Jr. Well-Read Black Girl Panel Discussion: Fearless Women in Science Fiction Poetry with Pamplona with Jim McGrath and Nancy Sindelar Chicago Coalition for the Homeless Horizons Writing Program Showcase Writers on War and Peace

@AWMuseum was great! Terrific crowd, and such a beautiful place! So pleased to have been there. I’d go back Kenneth B. Morris, Jr. speaks to a group from the Black Male Leadership Academy about the enduring relevance of Frederick Douglass. anytime! – Jonathan Santlofer 7

WRITEInspiring the Future IN When the American Writers Museum opened in 2017, we knew that this place would have a special role to play for young people — the next generation of great American writers. The Write In youth education program has been growing and evolving since the museum opened in May 2017. Write In uses the AWM’s exhibits, coupled with specially designed curriculum, to teach and inspire elementary, middle and high school students before, during, and after their museum visit. Over the last two years, we have learned a great deal about how students react to the exhibits and use the curriculum, which has informed ongoing improvements to the student experience. We have also increased our outreach, focusing primarily on schools where the majority of students’ families live below the poverty line. Thanks to our donors, we have raised funding to cover not only much of Write In’s operating expenses, but also subsidies for museum admission and buses for these schools, completely eliminating the cost barrier and giving these students the same opportunity as their peers. In 2018, we enhanced Write In with in-person author events just for students, writing workshops offered in partnership with Writopia, and special curriculum to accompany temporary exhibits linked to what students are learning in the classroom. For example, students used specially designed curriculum in the exhibit Frederick Douglass: Agitator, and many subsidized students received a free copy of The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, thanks to a grant from Allstate.

In 2018, Write In served 6,141 students, including 3,327 from low-income households who participated at no cost to the students’ families or schools.

Every time I see a group of Write In students at the museum, I know we’re doing something right. The students are engaged, having fun, and learning. Certainly, the museum’s many touchscreens and multi-sensory features have something to do with that. This modern museum uses the technology these students have always known. But it’s even more than that. They love the challenge of writing on vintage typewriters; and they are excited to learn more about the writers who are part of their school curriculum...their lives, their motivations, and their timeless messages. At the AWM, students see that many great American writers faced the same challenges they face today, and they made a difference–for themselves and for society–with their writing. Through Write In, we want to let young people know they have that power too. — John Estey, AWM Board Chairman, 2019

In 2018, Write In was supported by our Lead Sponsor, the Abra Prentice Foundation, Inc. with additional major support provided by the Ralph & Evelyn Davis Family Foundation, Lloyd & Kathryn Bettis, the Dr. Scholl Foundation, and an Anonymous Donor. 8

Students with Glory Edim, founder of Well-Read Black Girl, a book club turned online community and literary festival.

Write In students with award-winning author Jacqueline Woodson, Write In students with U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature. who spoke about her new memoir for children, Turning Pages. 9

Our growth is made possible by generous donors. We are grateful to the individuals, foundations, and corporations that made gifts between Jan 1–Dec. 31, 2018.

DONORS$100,000 and up $5,000–$9,999 $1,000 - $4,999 S. Leigh Pierson Conant Arch W. Shaw Foundation Anonymous Susan and Doug Lyons and Douglas R. Conant The Bedi Family Foundation Frank and Catherine Araneo Meredith Mays Espino The Meijer Foundation Gail Bent Lisa Barrow and Jonas Fisher Ann McDermott Stead Family Foundation Norman and Bobins Carol and Gary Berman Paul and Penelope McDonnell Wintrust Financial Robert A. and Joan E. Clifford Andy and Shaun Block Olivia Bedi’s Facebook Friends $50,000–$99,999 Michael T. Clune Elaine and Joseph Borruso Jessie and Robert Palmer Abra Prentice Foundation, Inc. James and Nina Donnelley Jack and Deedee Brannigan Kathryn and John Palmer Maree G. Bullock Edith and Gerald Falk Joseph Brennan Sara Paretsky in memory of Jimmie R. Alford Heritage Auctioneers & and Leslie Shad Joseph Parker M. Hill and Cheryl Hammock Galleries Liz and Skip Coggin Chad Riley Malcolm and Virgina O’Hagan Michael and Lisa Hotchkiss Craig and Teri Colmar Charles Rizzo $25,000–$49,999 Jan and Bill Jentes Carey Cranston Stephen and Ann Ross and Ellen Tritschler Allstate Insurance Company Mr. and Mrs. Martin J. Koldyke Clark and Marcia Silcox Robin and Edward Culbertson Roger and Julie Baskes Daniel Korengold and Martha Ruth and Joel Schoenmeyer Dippell John and Jane Demler Lloyd and Kathryn Bettis Richard Shutran Mayer Brown Patricia Dodson Thomas and Mary Carmel Sikich LLP Borders Milne Family Foundation Margaret Duncan and John Bisbikis John Sirek and Colleen Bulley & Andrews LLC Richard and Mary Beth Murphy Loughlin Harve Ferrill Chicago Council of the Shanti Nagarkatti Skirt PR Frederique I. Hartog-Levin American Writers Museum Ken and Jossy Nebenzahl Stanley and Donna Slabas Joseph Hassett John and Cathie Estey John D. and Alexandra C. Smith Blake & Hill Nichols Beverly and Warren Hayford Jay and Robin Hammer Neil and Kris Thomas Burton X. and Sheli Rosenberg Bradley Henderson Gerry Gedroic Lichterman Richard Traut Roberta Rubin Henderson Legal Services Poetry Foundation April Tritschler Don and Joyce Rumsfeld James F. Hunnewell Ralph and Evelyn Davis Family Therese Unumb and Philip Foundation Sara Lee and Axel Schupf Jane Rotrosen Agency Thompson Larry Shulman and Rhonda Michael Scodro and Tracey Johnson & Bell Matt Walch Rochambeau Zima Scodro Julie and Ken Justie Nike Whitcomb Carole and Gordon Segal $10,000–$24,999 Vivian Kaplan Jeffrey Wright Anonymous (2) Robert and Emily King Writopia Labs Bristol-Meyers Squibb Eugene and Carol Ludwig Daniel and Angela Yergin Foundation Marion A. Cameron Dr. Scholl Foundation Robert and Gena Franden James and Carol Hansen Werner and Marleen Hein Jane Irwin Ivan and Kathy Kane Komarek-Hyde-McQueen Foundation Chase and Mark Levey MacMillan Publishers Coco and Ethan Meers Catherine Mouly and Ted Carlson John W. and Jeanne M. Rowe S&C Electric Company Alexander and Robin Stuart Wintrust Chicago Gallery 10

$250–$999 Basel Al-Aswad Stuart and Shermin Kruse James Rocks Eric Stone Margery Al-Chalabi Justin Kulovsek Jade and Ryan Routson Jon Stromberg Randall Albers Lilibet Snellings Kyte Marilyn and Al Rush Tariq Taherbhai Anonymous and Peter Kyte Swati Saini Caroline Vickrey Stephen W. and Susan M. Karen Latchford Mary T. Schneider Julie Weary Baird Foundation Phyllis Lee Sarah Schrup Samuel and Charlene Wexler Bedi & Singer Michael Lewis Mary Serrahn Sue Wilder Jonathan and Olivia Bedi Kathi and Tom Loughlin Suzanne Shapiro Douglas Wilkerson Elysa J. Blacker Pamela and Greg Lungmus Suzanne Shier Sallie Wolf Judith Block Denise Macey Randi Sidgmore Karina Yuen Wong Elizabeth Boe John Mackey Joanne Starzec Susan Youdovin Hindy Bogner-Orenstein Helen Marlborough Jo Ann Stevenson Shaun Zhang Kathy Borrus Betsy Martens and Marshall Grate Michael Burke and Gary Von Euer Anthony Buttitta Judith Massuda Bob Byman Mary and Peter Mavrogenes Sally Campbell Madison McDonald Philip and Julie Croll W. David McGarry Regis and Elena Delmontagne Dawn H. Miller Jeff Deutsch Katherine Minarik William and Susanna Doolin Susan and George Morris Andrea Dudek Corinne Morrissey Richard Eisenberg Kim O’Brien Joan and Kevin Evanich Andrew Olson J. and E. Fanuzzi Tim Oravec Barry and Jeanette Filderman Taylor Overman Deborah and James Franczek Hyde and Ann Perce Mark and Cindy Fuller Eve and Michael Perri The Chicago Council for the American Writers Museum Melissa Phillips Art Garwin is a group of professionals who raise funds and awareness Terry Gilman PRM Consulting Inc for the museum. In 2018, their major fundraising event was Andrew and Ann Gore Mike Puican and Mary Hawley a Great Gatsby themed party in the museum. Andres Guzman Anne and Brent Ray The Chicago Council was led by Olivia Bedi in 2017 Caroline Hammock Angel Rivera and 2018. Philip L. Harris Kathy Hatcher Julia Hauldren Marilyn Hayden James Holderman Amanda Hollis Laurie Howick Monica Hughson Laura Huizenga Ogden Hunnewell Elinor and Ross Jannotta Kelly Jocius Julie Katz Christine and Glenn Kelly Claire Kenny Lori Koetters and Brian Smith Maria Kronfeld The Negaunee Foundation Children’s Literature Gallery 11 FINANCES Statement of Activities Statement of Cash Flows - Modified Cash Basis Year Ended 12/31/2018 Year Ended 12/31/2018

Revenue Cash Flows from Operating Activities Museum Admissions...... $221,404 Change in Net Assets...... ($513,467) Retail Sales: Net...... $36,100 Adjustments to Reconcile Change in Net Assets Memberships ...... $53,694 to Net Cash Provided by Operating Activities Individual Gifts...... $1,093,690 Depreciation...... $490,924 Security Deposit...... $100,000 Corporations and Foundations...... $713,743 Other Current Assets...... $7,884 Space Rental...... $46,482 $598,808 Program Income...... $26,228 Net Cash Provided (Used) Other Income...... $430 by Operating Activities...... $85,341 Total: $2,191,771 Cash Flows from Investing Activities Expenses Leasehold Improvements...... ($18,505) Museum Programming and Operations...... $2,042,165 Net Cash Provided (Used) by Investing Activities...... ($18,505) Management and General...... $468,329 Fundraising...... $194,744 Changes in Cash Flow Total: $2,705,238 Net Increase in Cash...... $66,836 Cash Balance - Beginning of Year...... $208,043 Change in Net Assets...... ($513,467) Cash Balance - End of Year...... $274,879

Growth in Museum Attendance June–December*

Visitors Write In Students

Expense Categories Sources of Contributions 22500

Fundraising 7% Corporations 13% 15000 Administration 17%

Foundations Individuals 27% 60% Museum Programs 7500 and Operations 75%

0 June–Dec. June–Dec. 2017 2018 * The American Writers Museum opened to the public in mid-May, 2017. Attendance from June–December 2018 is nearly 40 percent higher than June–December 2017. 12

MUSEUM NUMBERS ATTENDANCE &IMPACT2018 38,000

6,141 Students served through the Write In program. 1,500 Low-income students who participated in Write In at no cost to the families or schools, MEMBERS thanks to subsidies provided by AWM donors. 3,327

Social Media The Wintrust Mural Building on Chicago’s REACH Kennedy Expressway 190 MILLION

#3 out of 127 CHICAGO MUSEUMS 13

BOARD OF CHICAGO NATIONAL ADVISORY DIRECTORS COUNCIL COUNCIL

2018 OF THE AMERICAN Kwame Alexander Jeffrey Lependorf M. Hill Hammock WRITERS MUSEUM Poet, Children’s writer, Executive Director, Council of Literary Co-Chair and Newberry Medal winner Magazines and Presses Olivia Bedi Roberta Rubin President Isabel Allende Lisa Lucas Co-Chair Novelist, Memoirist, American Journalist, Broadcaster, and Executive Jonathan Bedi Academy of Arts and Letters, and Director, National Book Foundation Roger Baskes Presidential Medal of Freedom Vice Chairman John Bisbikis recipient Haki R. Madhubuti Author, Poet, and Publisher, John W. Estey Wasim Bleibel Marie Arana Third World Press Vice Chairman Colleen Donohue Novelist, Biographer, Critic, National Book Award finalist, & L.A. Times Book Leonard S. Marcus Jay Hammer Margaret Duncan Prize winner Author, Critic, Treasurer and Children’s book historian Heather Grove Jabari Asim Werner Hein Novelist, Children’s writer, Alice McDermott Vice Chairman Julianne Hartzell Literary critic, and Educator Novelist, Educator, and Corporate Secretary National Book Award winner Jason Hsu A. Scott Berg Jane Irwin Biographer, Pulitzer Prize winner, and Azar Nafisi Vice Chairman Adam Kelly National Book Award winner Author and Professor Malcolm O’Hagan Art Garwin Joyce Carol Oates Founder Claire Gorman U.S. and Educator Novelist and Educator Jerre Stead Maureen Corrigan Roxana Robinson Vice Chairman Shermin Kruse Journalist, Author, Professor, and Novelist, Biographer, and Critic Stuart Kruse Literary Critic, , and NPR Marie Arana Phyllis Lee Novelist, Essayist, Educator, Pulitzer Prize winner, National Book Award Olivia Bedi Rita Dove Rich Lee Former U.S. Poet Laureate, Essayist, finalist, Prize for American Fiction winner Allan E. Bulley, III Anne Ray Educator, and Pulitzer Prize winner Max Rudin Marion Cameron Brent Ray Stuart Dybek Poet and Fiction writer Publisher, Library of America Ellen Clark Chad Riley George Saunders Mike Clune Laura Schwartz Novelist, Short story writer, Fiction Writer and Educator and Pulitzer Prize winner S. Leigh Pierson Conant Mark Smith Donna Seaman Senior Editor, Booklist, American Carolyn Curiel Dave Eggers Lilibet Snellings Author, Editor, Publisher, National Book Library Assn Edith Falk Caroline Vickrey Award finalist, & L.A. Times Book Prize Lisa See winner Novelist, Memoirist, and Robert Franden Matthew Walch Asian/Pacific American James Hansen Britt Yackey Novelist, Bookseller, National Book Award for Literature winner Award winner, Pulitzer Prize finalist, Julie Justie Shaun Zhang Anna Deavere Smith and Library of Congress Prize for Playwright, Actress, Educator, and Ivan P. Kane American Fiction winner Dorothy and Prize winner Joanne Leedom-Ackerman Elliot Figman Ilan Stavans Poet and Executive Director, Chase Collins Levey Editor, Essayist, Translator and Poets & Writers Foundation Educator Coco Meers Reginald Gibbons Poet, Author, and Professor Catherine Mouly Former U.S. Poet Laureate, Nikki Giovanni Jr. Educator, and Pulitzer Prize winner Richard Murphy Poet, Essayist, Activist, and Educator Scott F. Turow Lynne Pace Robinson Adam Gopnik Novelist and Memoirist Judy Pomeranz Author, Journalist, and Viet Thanh Nguyen George Polk Award winner Novelist, Educator, Dominique Raccah Pulitzer Prize winner, and Michael Scodro Poet, Writer, Musician, Playwright, Asian/Pacific American and Ruth Lily Prize from the Poetry Award for Literature winner Larry Shulman Foundation Edward Widmer Tom Staley Historian and Scholar Former U.S. Poet Laureate, Performer, Cartoonist, and Educator 14

AFFILIATES The AWM Affiliates Program fosters collaboration among American author museums and homes to increase interest in the works of our great American writers. This program helps increase the national scope of the AWM. STAFF Louisa May Alcott’s Orchard House The Edna St. Vincent Millay Society at Steepletop Carey Cranston Nelson Algren Museum of Miller Beach President House The Center for Ray Bradbury Studies John Muir National Historic Site William Cullen Bryant Homestead MUSEUM OPERATIONS John G. Neihardt Center Pearl S. Buck Birthplace Christopher Burrow Andalusia: Director of Operations Pearl S. Buck House the Home of Flannery O’Connor Christina Carrera Monroe County Museum Eugene O’Neill National Historic Site Facilities Supervisor National Center Monte Cristo Cottage Ari Bachechi The Pat Conroy Literary Center Data Operations Coordinator Poe Baltimore Emily Dickinson Museum Edgar Allan Poe Museum STORYTELLERS Frederick Douglass National Historic Site O. Henry Museum Courtney Borjas Paul Laurence Dunbar House Cassidy Kearns The Old Manse Historic State Park Zoe Nyman Concord Museum Museum Home Jake Trapp Rowan Oak Theodore Roethke Home Museum PROGRAMS The Fitzgerald Museum Will Rogers Memorial Museums Allison Sansone Farm Carl Sandburg Home Program Director Hamlin Garland Homestead National Historic Site Sonal Shukla Edward Gorey House Carl Sandburg State Historic Site Assistant Program Director The William Saroyan House Museum Woody Guthrie Center MARKETING AND EVENTS Cherokee Nation, Alex Haley Museum & Interpretive Center Karie McGahan Sequoyah’s Cabin Museum The Wren’s Nest Director of Marketing & Private Events The National Steinbeck Center Georgia Writers Museum Catherine Ryan House Assistant Director of The House of the Seven Gables Marketing & Private Events Settlement Association Harriet Beecher Stowe Center Nate King Gene Stratton-Porter State Historic Site Content and Communications Foundation of Oak Park Thoreau Farm Coordinator Hemingway-Pfeiffer Museum Thurber House and Educational Center The Mark Twain House & Museum DEVELOPMENT Washington Irving’s Sunnyside Mark Twain Home Foundation Linda Dunlavy Colorado Springs Pioneers Museum Director of Development The Childhood Home Laura (Riding) Jackson Foundation Nikki Geslani Kurt Vonnegut Museum & Library Development & Membership Associate Robinson Jeffers Tor House Foundation Margaret Walker Center Emily Decker-Bess Sarah Orne Jewett House Museum Noah Webster House Development and The Beat Museum House and Garden Special Projects Coordinator The Beauregard-Keyes House The Mount INTERN Vachel Lindsay State Historic Site Walt Whitman’s Birthplace Kosi Achife Jack London State Historic Park John Greenleaf Whittier Birthplace VOLUNTEERS Longfellow House Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum Jennifer Buehler Washington’s Headquarters Lisa Cottrell National Historic Site Laura Ingalls Wilder Kara Friederich Historic Home & Museum Wadsworth-Longfellow House Maura Sullivan Hill Laura Ingalls Wilder Park & Museum Hillary Scaletta Herman Melville’s Arrowhead Bisola Sosan Thomas Wolfe Memorial The Merwin Conservancy Laura Sterkel 16 Coming in 2019

Ernest Hemingway’s Underwood Standard Portable, 1926 Tools of the Trade An exhibit of typewriters and other writing tools used by renowned American writers. Opening June 2019 in the Roberta Rubin Writer's Room

The mission of the American Writers Museum is to engage the public in celebrating American writers and exploring their influence on our history, our identity, our culture, and our daily lives.

180 North Michigan Avenue, Chicago, IL 60601 AmericanWritersMuseum.org • 312-374-8790